Growth of amorphous SiC film on Si by means of ion beam induced mixing

• Published in: Applied surface science 2012-12, Vol.263, p.367-372
• Main Authors: Barna, Árpád, Gurban, Sandor, Kotis, László, Lábár, János, Sulyok, Attila, Tóth, Attila L., Menyhárd, Miklós, Kovac, Janez, Panjan, Peter
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amorphous SiC; Compound formation by FIB; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Defect mediated compound formation; Exact sciences and technology; Ion damage; Ion mixing; Physics; SiC coating
• ISSN: 0169-4332; 1873-5584
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2012.09.063

► SiC rich layer has been produced by irradiating the C/Si interface by Ga+ ions. ► The amount of SiC produced depends on the square root of fluence of the projectile. ► TRIDYN code can describe the ion mixing process. ► The formation of SiC is explained by defect-mediated reaction. Focused ion beam (FIB)-induced ion mixing was studied in a C/Si/C/Si/C/Si substrate multilayer structure sample by means of Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) depth profiling, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The multilayer sample was irradiated with Ga+ ions using focused ion beam (FIB) at room temperature. The ion energy and fluence of the ion irradiation varied in the range of 10–30keV and 10–120×1015ions/cm2, respectively. The ion irradiation induced a slightly asymmetric intermixing of the top C and Si layers, which could be modeled by the TRIDYN code. During ion mixing, part of the intermixed C and Si atoms reacted, forming amorphous SiC. The amount of SiC depends on the square root of the Ga+ fluence. Thus, amorphous SiC thin film (with Ga contamination) with thickness in the nanometer range can be produced by means of FIB.