Effect of Gas Sources on the Deposition of Nano-Crystalline Diamond Films Prepared by Microwave Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Nano-crystalline diamond （NCD） films were deposited on silicon substrates by a microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition （MPCVD） reactor in C2H5OH/H2 and CH4/H2/O2 systems, respectively, with a constant ratio of carbon/hydrogen/oxygen. By means of atomic force microscopy （AFM） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）, it was shown that the NCD films deposited in the C2H5OH/H2 system possesses more uniform surface than that deposited in the CH4/H2/O2 system. Results from micro-Raman spectroscopy revealed that the quality of the NCD films was different even though the plasmas in the two systems contain exactly the same proportion of elements. In order to explain this phenomenon, the bond energy of forming OH groups, energy distraction in plasma and the deposition process of NCD films were studied. The experimental results and discussion indicate that for a same ratio of carbon/hydrogen/oxygen, the C2H5OH/H2 plasma was beneficial to deposit high quality NCD films with smaller average grain size and lower surface roughness.

PREPARATION OF NANO-CRYSTALLINE Fe-Cu THIN FILMS AND THEIR MAGNETIC PROPERTIES

Fe-Cu thin films of 0.2 mum in thickness with different Cu contents wereprepared by using r.f. magnetron sputtering onto glass substrate. The effect of sputteringparameters, including Ar gas pressure and input rf power, on the structure and magnetic propertieswas investigated. It was found that when the power is lower than 70W, the structure of the filmsremained single bcc-Fe phase with Cu solubility of up to 50at. percent. TEM observations for thebcc-Fe phase showed that the grain size was in the nanometer range of less than 20nm. The coercivityof Fe- Cu films was largely affected by not only Ar gas pressure but also rf power, and reachedabout 2.5Oe in the pressure of 0.67-6.67Pa and in the power of less than 100W. In addition,saturation magnetization, with Cu content less than 60at. percent, was about proportional to thecontent of bcc-Fe. When Cu content was at 60at. percent, however, saturation magnetization was muchsmaller than its calculation value.

Preparation of Nano-Crystalline Diamond Films on Poly-Crystalline Diamond Thick Films by Microwave Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Nano-crystalline diamond （NCD） films were prepared on poly-crystalline diamond （PCD） thick flims by the microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition （MPCVD） method. Free standing PCD thick film （50 mm in diameter） with a thickness of 413 μm was deposited in CHn/H2 plasma. It was then abraded for 2 hours and finally cut into pieces in a size of 10×10 mm^2 by pulse laser. NCD fihns were deposited on the thick film substrates by introducing a micro-crystalline diamond （MCD） interlayer. Results showed that a higher carbon concentration （5%） and a lower substrate temperature （650℃） were feasible to obtain a highly smooth interlayer, and the appropriate addition of oxygen （2%） into the gas mixture was conducive to obtaining a smooth nano-crystalline diamond film with a tiny grain size.

Brightness of Blue/Violet Luminescent Nano-Crystalline AZO and IZO Thin Films with Effect of Layer Number:For High Optical Performance

From different reports, it （AZO） and indium-doped including usage areas. We nanocrystalline films with is realized that there is a need to consider all sides of aluminum-doped zinc oxide zinc oxide （IZO） thin films with their optical, luminescence and surface properties establish an assessment to carry out further information to summarize AZO and IZO impact of the layer number.

Hexagonal Nano-Crystalline BCN Films Grown on Si (100) Substrate Studied by X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy

Hexagonal nano-crystalline boron carbonitride (h-BCN) films grown on Si (100) substrate have been precisely investigated. The films were synthesized by radio frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition using tris-dimethylamino borane as a single-source molecular precursor. The deposition was performed by setting RF power at 400 - 800 W. The reaction pressure was at 2.6 Pa and the substrate temperature was recorded at 700°C - 800°C. Formation of the nano-crystalline h-BCN compound has been confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis. The diffraction peaks at 26.3° together with a small unknown peak at 29.2° were elucidated due to the formation of an h-BCN structure. The films composed of B, C, and N atoms with different B-N, B-C, C-N chemical bonds in forming the sp2-BCN atomic configuration studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Orientation and local structures of the h-BCN hybrid were studied by near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) measurements. The dominant presence of p* and s* resonance peaks of the sp2-hybrid orbitals in the B K-edge NEXAFS spectra revealed the formation of the sp2-BCN configuration around B atoms like-BN3 in h-BN. The orientation was suggested on the basis of the polarization dependence of B K-edge and N K-edge of the NEXAFS spectra.

Evaluation on residual stresses of silicon-doped CVD diamond films using X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy

The effect of silicon doping on the residual stress of CVD diamond films is examined using both X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and Raman spectroscopy measurements. The examined Si-doped diamond films are deposited on WC-Co substrates in a home-made bias-enhanced HFCVD apparatus. Ethyl silicate (Si(OC2H5)4) is dissolved in acetone to obtain various Si/C mole ratio ranging from 0.1% to 1.4% in the reaction gas. Characterizations with SEM and XRD indicate increasing silicon concentration may result in grain size decreasing and diamond [110] texture becoming dominant. The residual stress values of as-deposited Si-doped diamond films are evaluated by both sin2ψ method, which measures the (220) diamond Bragg diffraction peaks using XRD, with ψ-values ranging from 0° to 45°, and Raman spectroscopy, which detects the diamond Raman peak shift from the natural diamond line at 1332 cm-1. The residual stress evolution on the silicon doping level estimated from the above two methods presents rather good agreements, exhibiting that all deposited Si-doped diamond films present compressive stress and the sample with Si/C mole ratio of 0.1% possesses the largest residual stress of ~1.75 GPa (Raman) or ~2.3 GPa (XRD). As the silicon doping level is up further, the residual stress reduces to a relative stable value around 1.3 GPa.

Large Scale Homogeneous Growth Mechanics of Microcrystalline Silicon Films on Rough Surface

Large scale homogenous growth of microcrystalline silicon （μ.c-Si：H） on cheap substrates by inductively coupled plasma （ICP） of Ar diluted Sill4 has been studied. From XRD and Raman spectrum, we find that substrates can greatly affect the crystalline orientation, and the μc-Si：H films are comprised of small particles. Thickness detection by surface profilometry shows that the thin μc-Si：H films are homogenous in large scale. Distributions of both ion density and electron temperature are found to be uniform in the vicinity of substrate by means of diagnosis of Langmuir probe. Based on these experimental results, it can be proposed that rough surfaces play important roles in the crystalline network formation and Ar can affect the reaction process and improve the characteristics of μc-Si：H films. Also, ICP reactor can deposit the thin film in large scale.

Rain Erosion Behavior of Silicon Dioxide Films Prepared on Sapphire

Silicon dioxide （SiO2） films were prepared on sapphire （α-Al2O3） by radio frequency magnetron reactive sputtering in order to increase both transmission and rain erosion resistant performance of infrared domes of sapphire. Composition and structure of SiO2 films were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）, respectively. The transmittance of uncoated and coated sapphire was measured using a Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spectrometer. Rain erosion tests of the uncoated and coated sapphire were performed at 211 m/s impact velocity with an exposure time ranging from 1 to 8 min on a whirling arm rig. Results show that the deposited films can greatly increase the transmission of sapphire in mid-wave IR. After rain erosion test, decreases in normalized transmission were less than 1% for designed SiO2 films and the SiO2 coating was strongly bonded to the sapphire substrate. In addition, sapphires coated with SiO2 films had a higher transmittance than uncoated ones after rain erosion.

Study on stability of hydrogenated amorphous silicon films

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon （a-Si：H） films with high and same order of magnitude photosensitivity （-10^5） but different stability were prepared by using microwave electron cyclotron resonance chemical vapour deposition system under the different deposition conditions. It was proposed that there was no direct correlation between the photosensitivity and the hydrogen content （CH） as well as H-Si bonding configurations, but for the stability, they were the critical factors. The experimental results indicated that higher substrate temperature, hydrogen dilution ratio and lower deposition rate played an important role in improving the microstructure of a-Si：H films. We used hydrogen elimination model to explain our experimental results.

The effect of initial discharge conditions on the properties of microcrystalline silicon thin films and solar cells

This paper studies the effects of silane back diffusion in the initial plasma ignition stage on the properties of microcrystalline silicon （μc-Si：H） films by Raman spectroscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry, through delaying the injection of SiH4 gas to the reactor before plasma ignition. Compared with standard discharge condition, delayed SiH4 gas condition could prevent the back diffusion of Sill4 from the reactor to the deposition region effectively, which induced the formation of a thick amorphous incubation layer in the interface between bulk film and glass substrate. Applying this method, it obtains the improvement of spectral response in the middle and long wavelength region by combining this method with solar cell fabrication. Finally, results are explained by modifying zero-order analytical model, and a good agreement is found between the model and experiments concerning the optimum delayed injection time.

Research on the optimum hydrogenated silicon thin films for application in solar cells

Hydrogenated silicon （Si：H） thin films for application in solar ceils were deposited by using very high frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition （VHF PECVD） at a substrate temperature of about 170 ℃, The electrical, structural, and optical properties of the films were investigated. The deposited films were then applied as i-layers for p-i-n single junction solar cells. The current-voltage （I - V） characteristics of the cells were measured before and after the light soaking. The results suggest that the films deposited near the transition region have an optimum properties for application in solar cells. The cell with an i-layer prepared near the transition region shows the best stable performance.

The study of amorphous incubation layers during the growth of microcrystalline silicon films under different deposition conditions

The structural un-uniformity of microcrystalline silicon, thin film, amorphous incubation layerc-Si：H films prepared using very high frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition method has been investigated by Raman spectroscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometer and atomic force mi- croscopy. It was found that the formation of amorphous incubation layer was caused by the back diffusion of SiH4 and the amorphous induction of glass surface during the initial ignition process, and growth of the incubation layer can be suppressed and uniform μc-Si：H phase is generated by the application of delayed initial SiH4 density and silane profiling methods.

Chemical Vapor Deposition Mechanism of Copper Films on Silicon Substrates

A versatile metal-organic chemical vapor deposition （MOCVD） system was designed and constructed. Copper films were deposited on silicon （100） substrates by chemical vapor deposition （CVD） using Cu（hfac）2 as a precursor. The growth of Cu nucleus on silicon substrates by H2 reduction of Cu（hfac）2 was studied by atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The growth mode of Cu nucleus is initially Volmer-Weber mode （island）, and then transforms to Stranski-Rastanov mode （layer-by-layer plus island）. The mechanism of Cu nucleation on silicon （100） substrates was further investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. From Cu2p, O1s, F1s, Si2p patterns, the observed C=O, OH and CF3/CF2 should belong to Cu（hfac） formed by the thermal dissociation of Cu（hfac）2. H2 reacts with hfac on the surface, producing OH. With its accumulation, OH reacts with hfac, forming HO-hfac, and desorbs, meanwhile, the copper oxide is reduced, and thus the redox reaction between Cu（hafc）2 and H2 occurs.

Laser-Plasma Deposition of Silicon Carbonitride Films by the HMDS Vapor Gas Flow Activation after a Laser Beam Focus

A new laser-plasma deposition method has been developed for the plasma chemical deposition of hard silicon carbonitride coatings on stainless steel substrates from the hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) Si2NH(CH3)6 vapor in a high-speed Ar and Ar + 10 vol.% He gas stream at the HMDS gas flow activation after the laser beam focus. The method allows depositing silicon carbonitride coatings at the rate of 0.4 - 1.2 μm·min-1, i.e. ~2 times higher than that at introducing HMDS in the laser beam focus zone. The properties of the prepared coatings have been studied by the methods of IR and Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, nanoindentation and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Studying the film structure with the use of XRD showed that the prepared silicon carbonitride coatings are X-ray amorphous. It has been found that the coating deposition rate and the structure of coatings depend on the process parameters: HMDS flow rate and plasma-generating gas (argon or (Ar + He). The method allows depositing SiCN films at a high speed and a hardness of 20 - 22 GPa.

Fabrication of seeded substrates for layer transferrable silicon films

The layer transfer process is one of the most promising methods for low-cost and highly-efficient solar cells, in which transferrable mono-crystalline silicon thin wafers or films can be produced directly from gaseous feed-stocks. In this work, we show an approach to preparing seeded substrates for layer-transferrable silicon films. The commercial silicon wafers are used as mother substrates, on which periodically patterned silicon rod arrays are fabricated, and all of the surfaces of the wafers and rods are sheathed by thermal silicon oxide. Thermal evaporated aluminum film is used to fill the gaps between the rods and as the stiff mask, while polymethyl methacrylate （PMMA） and photoresist are used as the soft mask to seal the gap between the filled aluminum and the rods. Under the joint resist of the stiff and soft masks, the oxide on the rod head is selectively removed by wet etching and the seed site is formed on the rod head. The seeded substrate is obtained after the removal of the masks. This joint mask technique will promote the endeavor of the exploration of mechanically stable, unlimitedly reusable substrates for the kerfless technology.

Synthesis of GaN films on porous silicon substrates

A novel and simple method was employed to synthesize GaN films on porous silicon （PS） substrates, GaN films were obtained through the reaction between NH3 and Ga2O3 films deposited on the substrates with magnetron sputtering. Since GaN and PS are all good materials for luminescence, it is expected to obtain some new properties from GaN on PS. The samples were analyzed with X-ray diffraction （XRD） to identify crystalline structure. Fourier transmit infrared （FFIR） spectrum was used to analyze the chemical state of the samples. The films were observed with scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and were found to consist of many big crystal grains. Photoluminescence （PL） spectrum was used to illuminate the optical property of the GaN films.

Thermoelectric effect of silicon films prepared by aluminum-induced crystallization

Aluminum-induced crystallized silicon films were prepared on glass substrates by magnetron sputtering. Aluminum was added in the silicon films intermittently by the regular pulse sputtering of an aluminum target. The amount of aluminum in the silicon films can be controlled by regulating the aluminum sputtering power and the sputtering time of the undoped silicon layer; thus, the Seebeck coefficient and electrical resistivity of the polyerystaUine silicon films can be adjusted. It is found that, when the sputtering power ratio of aluminum to silicon is 16%, both the Seebeck coefficient and the electrical resistivity decrease with the increasing amount of aluminum as expected; the Seebeck coefficient and the electrical resistivity at room temperature are 0.185-0.285 mV/K and 0.30-2.4 Ω.cm, respectively. By reducing the sputtering power ratio to 7%, however, the Seebeck coefficient does not change much, though the electrical resistivity still decreases with the amount of aluminum increasing; the Seebeck coefficient and electrical resistivity at room temperature are 0.219-0.263 mV/K and 0.26-0.80 Ω·cm, respectively.

Surface morphology and impurity distribution of electron beam recrystallized silicon films on low cost substrates for solar cell absorber

A line shaped electron beam recrystallised polycrystalline silicon film on the low cost substrate was investigated for the use of the solar cell absorber. The applied EB energy density strongly influences the surface morphology of the film system. Lower EB energy density results in droplet morphology and the rougher SiO2 capping layer due to the low fluidity. With the energy increasing, the capping layer becomes smooth and continuous and less and small pinholes form in the silicon film. Tungstendisilicide (WSi2) is formed at the interface tungsten/silicon but also at the grain boundaries of the silicon. Because of the fast melting and cooling of the silicon film, the eutectic of silicon and tungstendisilicide mainly forms at the grain boundary of the primary silicon dendrites. The SEM-EDX analysis shows that there are no chlorine and hydrogen in the area surrounding a pinhole after recrystallization because of outgassing during the solidification.

Preparation and characterization of barium strontium titanate/silicon nanoporous pillar array composite thin films by a sol-gel method

Barium strontium titanate （Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3, BST）/silicon nanoporous pillar array （Si-NPA） thin films were prepared by a spin-coating/annealing technique based on Si-NPA with micro/nano-structure. Both the isomer conversion of acetylacetone and the network structure combined by enol and Ti-alkoxide facilitate the formation of the BST sol and the subsequent crystallization. Before the perovskite BST begins to form, the intermediate phase （Ba, Sr）Ti2OsCO3 is found. The boundary between BST and Si-NPA is of clarity and little interface diffusion, disclosing that Si-NPA is an ideal template substrate in the preparation of multifunctional composite films.

Effect of driving frequency on the structure of silicon grown on Ag(111) films by very-high-frequency magnetron sputtering

The effect of driving frequency on the structure of silicon grown on Ag（111） film is investigated, which was prepared by using the very-high-frequency（VHF）（40.68 MHz and 60 MHz） magnetron sputtering. The energy and flux density of the ions impinging on the substrate are also analyzed. It is found that for the 60-MHz VHF magnetron sputtering, the surface of silicon on Ag（111） film exhibits a small cone structure, similar to that of Ag（111） film substrate, indicating a better microstructure continuity. However, for the 40.68-MHz VHF magnetron sputtering, the surface of silicon on Ag（111） film shows a hybrid structure of hollowed-cones and hollowed-particles, which is completely different from that of Ag（111）film. The change of silicon structure is closely related to the differences in the ion energy and flux density controlled by the driving frequency of sputtering.