Nano-scale depth-varying recrystallization of oblique Ar⁺ sputtered Si(111) layers.

ABSTRACT: Silicon, the workhorse of semiconductor industry, is being exploited for various functional applications in numerous fields of nanotechnology. In this paper, we report the fabrication of depth controllable amorphous silicon (a-Si) layers under 80 keV Ar⁺ ion sputtering at off-normal ion incidences of 30°, 40° and 50° and crystallization of these amorphous Si(111) layers under thermal annealing. We find that the irradiated samples were not fully amorphized even for the lowest oblique incidence of 30°. Sputtering at off-normal incidences induces depth controllable surface amorphization in Si(111). Annealing at temperature of 1,073 K is characterized by formation of depth-varying buried amorphous layer due to defect recrystallization and damage recovery. Some remnant tensile stress

SUBMITTER: Gupta D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7367853 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature