Free-Energy Barrier to Crystallite Nucleation in Solid-Phase Crystallized Poly-Silicon Thin Films

1997 ◽  
Vol 472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hideya Kumomi ◽  
Frank G. Shi
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Free Energy ◽  
Energy Barrier ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Free Energy Barrier ◽  
Solid Phase Crystallization ◽  
Silicon Thin Films ◽  
Nucleation Barrier ◽  
Amorphous Si ◽  
Amor Phization

ABSTRACTWe introduce a non-Arrhenius method for measuring free-energy barrier to nucleation, W*, directly from size distribution of crystallites. W* is determined independent of any model for the nucleation barrier and independent of energy barrier to growth. The method is applicable to three-dimensionally growing crystallites, planar crystallites in thin films, and both compact and fractal crystallites. We apply the method to dendritic crystallites obtained by solid-phase crystallization of amorphous Si thin films into which Si+ ions are implanted at various conditions prior to the isothermal annealing. The ion implantation suppresses the nucleation of the crystallites and enhances the crystallite size of the resulting polycrystalline films. The directly measured W* increases as the accelerating energy or the dose of the Si+ ions increases. This result suggests that the observed suppression of the nucleation could not be accounted for simply by the amor-phization of the preexisting crystallites by the ion bombardment.

Microstructure Evolution of Amorphous Si1-xGex Thin Films

1997 ◽  
Vol 472 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Y. Tong ◽  
Q. Jiang ◽  
D. Hsu ◽  
T. J. King ◽  
F. G. Shi
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Thin Films ◽  
Free Energy ◽  
Energy Barrier ◽  
Composition Dependence ◽  
Composition Range ◽  
Thin Film Transistor ◽  
Free Energy Barrier ◽  
Amorphous Si ◽  
Good Agreement

ABSTRACTThe composition dependence of the nucleation free energy barrier W* in amorphous Si1-xGex thin films is investigated. Within the composition range of x = 0.25 ∼ 0.52, the nucleation free energy barrier exhibits a maximum, which is in a good agreement with our theoretical analysis. The results are significant for processing polycrystalline SiGe thin films with desirable microstructures for thin film transistor applications. In addition, the incubation time of crystallization of amorphous Si1-xGex (x=0.5) thin films is investigated as a function of temperature.

Solid-Phase Amorphization in Layered Metal/Silicon thin Films

1987 ◽  
Vol 103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Menachem Nathan
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Free Energy ◽  
Thermal Annealing ◽  
Rapid Thermal Annealing ◽  
Glassy Phase ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
General Scheme ◽  
Crystalline Compound ◽  
Nucleation Kinetics ◽  
Silicon Thin Films

ABSTRACTA general scheme for determining which metal-Si systems undergo solidphase amorphization (SPA) upon rapid thermal annealing is presented and used to investigate Ni-Si, Ti-Si, V-Si, Co-Si and Cr-Si reactions. SPA occurs only in the first three systems. With the glaring exception of Co-Si, the results agree with the thermodynamic predictions of SPA in systems in which the free energy of a glassy phase is significantly lower than the free energy of the separate components. The amorphization may also be influenced by the diffusing species and contamination. Following SPA, the first crystalline compound is determined by nucleation kinetics.

Directional Field Aided Lateral Crystallization of Amorphous Silicon Thin Films

2001 ◽  
Vol 664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marek A. T. Izmajlowicz ◽  
Neil A. Morrison ◽  
Andrew J. Flewitt ◽  
William I. Milne
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Low Temperature ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Amorphous Silicon ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Excimer Laser Annealing ◽  
Solid Phase Crystallization ◽  
Metal Induced Crystallization ◽  
Silicon Thin Films ◽  
Induced Crystallization

ABSTRACTFor application to active matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCDs), a low temperature (< 600 °C) process for the production of polycrystalline silicon is required to permit the use of inexpensive glass substrates. This would allow the integration of drive electronics onto the display panel. Current low temperature processes include excimer laser annealing, which requires expensive equipment, and solid phase crystallization, which requires high temperatures. It is known that by adding small amounts of metals such as nickel to the amorphous silicon the solid phase crystallization temperature can be significantly reduced. The rate of this solid phase metal induced crystallization is increased in the presence of an electric field. Previous work on field aided crystallization has reported crystal growth that either proceeds towards the positive terminal or is independent of the direction of the electric field. In this work, extensive investigation has consistently revealed directional crystallization, from the positive to the negative terminal, of amorphous silicon thin films during heat treatment in the presence of an electric field. This is the first time that this phenomenon has been reported. Models have been proposed for metal induced crystallization with and without an applied electric field in which a reaction between Ni and Si to produce NiSi is the rate-limiting step. The crystallization rate is increased in the presence of an electric field through the drift of positive Ni ions.

Photoluminescence study of polycrystalline silicon thin films prepared by liquid and solid phase crystallization

2013 ◽  
Vol 210 (8) ◽  
pp. 1652-1656 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Schönau ◽  
J. Rappich ◽  
M. Weizman ◽  
D. Amkreutz ◽  
B. Rech
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Polycrystalline Silicon ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Solid Phase Crystallization ◽  
Photoluminescence Study ◽  
Silicon Thin Films

Medium range order engineering in amorphous silicon thin films for solid phase crystallization

2013 ◽  
Vol 113 (19) ◽  
pp. 193511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix Law ◽  
Per I. Widenborg ◽  
Joachim Luther ◽  
Bram Hoex
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Amorphous Silicon ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Range Order ◽  
Solid Phase Crystallization ◽  
Medium Range Order ◽  
Silicon Thin Films ◽  
Medium Range

Low-temperature solid-phase crystallization of amorphous silicon thin films deposited by rf magnetron sputtering with substrate bias

2006 ◽  
Vol 89 (2) ◽  
pp. 022104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seung-Ik Jun ◽  
Philip D. Rack ◽  
Timothy E. McKnight ◽  
Anatoli V. Melechko ◽  
Michael L. Simpson
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Low Temperature ◽  
Magnetron Sputtering ◽  
Amorphous Silicon ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽  
Substrate Bias ◽  
Solid Phase Crystallization ◽  
Silicon Thin Films
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