Fast Scan Laser Annealing

ABSTRACTLaser-annealing phenomena have typically been divided into two distinct realms. Pulsed lasers involved very short anneal times and small deposited energy densities. Slowly scanned cw lasers involved intermediate times (ms range) and larger energy densities. Repetitively scanned electron beams have extended the range of anneal time and energy density toward conventional thermal processing. This paper examines the regime between pulsed laser annealing and conventional cw laser annealing. By greatly increasing the scan speed of the laser, annealing times and deposited energy densities are reduced and approach those of pulsed laser annealing. Applications are discussed in the areas of silicon-on-insulator recrystallization, low resistivity poly, vertical integration, local lateral seeding, explosive crystallization, and line-source simulation.