Electron diffraction study of hydrogenated amorphous SiC

Hydrogenated amorphous SiC (a-SiC:H) is a promising new solar cell material. In constrast to structural studies of amorphous Si and amorphous C, studies of amorphous SiC are rare. The main features of the diffraction patterns of amorphous Silicon and amorphous Carbon are two diffuse halos which for Si correspond to interatomic distances of about 2.35 Å and 3.85 Å and for C to 1.50 Å and 2.50 Å. These distances are close to the nearest interatomic distances present in the crystalline form of the same elements.Using 120 KeV electrons, we observe two pronounced halos also for a-SiC:H, similar to what is observed for pure Si and pure C. Figure 1 shows diffraction patterns from a-SiC:H and for comparison from Si and C.