High-rate (> 1nm/s) and low-temperature (< 400 ℃) deposition of silicon nitride using an N_2/SiH_4 and NH_3/SiH_4 expanding thermal plasma

摘要

High-rate (> 1 nm/s) and low-temperature (50 - 400 ℃) deposition of silicon nitride (a-SiN_x:H) films has been investigated by the expanding thermal plasma (ETP) technique using SiH_4 as Si-containing and N_2 or NH_3 as N-containing precursor gases. The structural, optical and electrical properties of the a-SiN_x:H films have been studied by elastic recoil detection, spectroscopic ellipsometry, infrared spectroscopy, dark conductivity measurements and atomic force microscopy. The film properties of the ETP deposited a-SiN_x:H films in this low-temperature range are discussed in terms of deposition rate, atomic composition, UV-VIS optical and IR vibrational properties, conductivity, and surface topography of the films.