A low-energy oxygen and/or nitrogen ion beam with an energy level of about 60 eV is used to form an ultra-thin layer of silicon adduct on unheated silicon substrates. The ion beam is created with a single-grid Kaufman-type source and the process is performed in a vacuum chamber evacuated to a base pressure of about 3×10.sup.-7 torr with oxygen and/or nitrogen gases, with or without argon introduced into the chamber. FET-gate-quality oxides on the order of about 45 angstroms have been produced in the successful fabrication of n-channel MOSFET's.
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