On the effects of thermal treatment on the composition, structure, morphology, and optical properties of hydrogenated am
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The composition, structure, morphology, and optical characteristics of hydrogenated amorphous silicon-oxycarbide (a-SiCxOyHz) materials were investigated as a function of experimental processing conditions and post-deposition thermal treatment. Thermal chemical vapor deposition (TCVD) was applied to the growth of three different types of a-SiCxOyHz films, namely, SiC-like (SiC1.08O0.07H0.21), Si-C-O (SiC0.50O1.20H0.22), and SiO2-like (SiC0.20O1.70H0.24). The resulting films were subsequently annealed at temperatures ranging from 500 C to 1100 C for 1 h in an argon atmosphere. The composition, structure, and morphology of as-deposited and post-annealed films were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS), nuclear-reaction analysis (NRA), and scanning electron microscopy. Corresponding optical properties were assessed by spectroscopic ultraviolet-visible ellipsometry (UV-VIS-SE). These studies led to the identification of an optimized process window for the growth of Er doped silicon oxycarbide (SiC0.5O1.0:Er) thin film with strong room-temperature photoluminescence emission measured around 1540 nm within a broad (460 nm to 600 nm) wavelength band. Associated modeling studies showed that the effective cross section for Er excitation in the SiC0.5O1.0:Er matrix was approximately four orders of magnitude larger than its analog for direct optical excitation of Er ions.
I. INTRODUCTION
Silicon oxycarbide (SiCxOyHz) materials have been the subject of extensive research and development activities due to a number of promising technological applications. These include their potential use as lowdielectric constant interlayer material in emerging computer chip applications, and copper (Cu) etch-stop layer and/or passivation film in multi-level metallization integrated circuitry (IC) schemes.1–3 In particular, the presence of carbon in the silicon oxycarbide matrix, typically in the form of hydrocarbons, tends to disrupt the periodicity of the Si-O-Si network, and results in a lower dielectric constant than that for silicon dioxide (SiO2). Furthermore, the introduction of erbium doping in the SiCxOyHz system opens the door to exciting opportunities in the area of optical devices and systems,4–6 particularly given that the 4I13/2-4I15/2 intra-f transition of Er3+ leads to light emission at the standard a)
Current address: International Business Machines, Hopewell Junction, New York 10598 b) Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: [email protected] DOI: 10.1557/JMR.2009.0308 J. Mater. Res., Vol. 24, No. 8, Aug 2009
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telecommunication wavelength of 1540 nm. Furthermore, the shielding of the Er 4f electrons by their 5s and 5p counterparts ensures stability against ambient conditions. The fabrication of silicon oxycarbide films has been carried out predominantly through low-temperature plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) using an a
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