Remote hydrogen microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition of silicon carbonitride films from a (dimethylamino)dimethylsilane precursor: Compositional and structural dependencies of film properties

• Published in: Diamond and related materials 2006-10, Vol.15 (10), p.1650-1658
• Main Authors: Blaszczyk-Lezak, I., Wrobel, A.M., Bielinski, D.M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chemical vapor deposition (including plasma-enhanced cvd, mocvd, etc.); Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Density; Exact sciences and technology; Materials science; Mechanical properties; Methods of deposition of films and coatings; film growth and epitaxy; Optical constants (including refractive index, complex dielectric constant, absorption, reflection and transmission coefficients, emissivity); Optical constants: refractive index, complex dielectric constant, absorption, reflection and transmission coefficients, emissivity; Optical properties and condensed-matter spectroscopy and other interactions of matter with particles and radiation; Optical properties of bulk materials and thin films; Physics; Refractive index; Silicon carbonitride film
• ISSN: 0925-9635; 1879-0062
• DOI: 10.1016/j.diamond.2006.01.019

The physical, optical, and mechanical properties of amorphous hydrogenated silicon carbonitride (a-Si:C:N:H) films produced by the remote hydrogen plasma chemical vapor deposition (RP-CVD) from (dimethylamino)dimethylsilane have been investigated in relation to their chemical composition and structure. The films deposited at different substrate temperature (30–400 °C) were characterized in terms of their density, refractive index, adhesion to a substrate, hardness, elastic modulus, friction coefficient, and resistance to wear predicted from the “plasticity index” values. The correlations between the film compositional parameters, expressed by the atomic concentration ratios N/Si and C/Si, as well as structural parameters described by the relative integrated intensities of the absorption IR bands from the Si–N, Si–C, and C–N bonds, and the XPS Si2p band from the Si–C bonds (controlled by substrate temperature) were investigated. On the basis of the results of these studies, reasonable compositional and structural dependencies of film properties have been determined.