Formation of Large, Orientation-Controlled, Nearly Single Crystalline Si Thin Films on SiO2 Using Contact Printing of Rolled and Annealed Nickel Tapes

Amorphous silicon (a-Si) films prepared on oxidized silicon wafer were crystallized to a highly textured form using contact printing of rolled and annealed nickel tapes. Crystallization was achieved by first annealing the a-Si film in contact with patterned Ni tape at 600°C for 20 min in a flowing forming gas (90 % N2, 10 % H2) environment, then removing the Ni tape and further annealing the a-Si film in vacuum for2hrsat600°C. An array of crystalline regions with diameters of up to 20 μm could be formed. Electron microscopy indicates that the regions are essentially single-crystalline except for the presence of twins and/or type A-B formations, and that all regions have the same orientation in all 3 directions even when separated by more than hundreds of microns. High resolution TEM analysis shows that formation of such orientation-controlled, nearly single crystalline regions is due to formation of nearly single crystalline NiSi2 under the point of contact, which then acts as the template for silicide-induced lateral crystallization. Furthermore, the orientation relationship between Si grains and Ni tape is observed to be Si (110) || Ni (001)