Effect of plasma parameters on characteristics of silicon nitride film deposited by single and dual frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition

Journal Article · Tue Mar 15 00:00:00 EDT 2016 · Physics of Plasmas

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4944675· OSTI ID:22599086

Yin, Yongyi

This work investigates the deposition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride films using various low-temperature plasmas. Utilizing radio-frequency (RF, 13.56 MHz) and ultra-high frequency (UHF, 320 MHz) powers, different plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition processes are conducted in the mixture of reactive N{sub 2}/NH{sub 3}/SiH{sub 4} gases. The processes are extensively characterized using different plasma diagnostic tools to study their plasma and radical generation capabilities. A typical transition of the electron energy distribution function from single- to bi-Maxwellian type is achieved by combining RF and ultra-high powers. Data analysis revealed that the RF/UHF dual frequency power enhances the plasma surface heating and produces hot electron population with relatively low electron temperature and high plasma density. Using various film analysis methods, we have investigated the role of plasma parameters on the compositional, structural, and optical properties of the deposited films to optimize the process conditions. The presented results show that the dual frequency power is effective for enhancing dissociation and ionization of neutrals, which in turn helps in enabling high deposition rate and improving film properties.

• OSTI ID: 22599086
• Journal Information: Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 23, Issue 3; Other Information: (c) 2016 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
AMMONIA
CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION
DATA ANALYSIS
DEPOSITS
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
DISTRIBUTION FUNCTIONS
ELECTRON TEMPERATURE
ELECTRONS
ENERGY SPECTRA
FILMS
HYDROGENATION
IONIZATION
MHZ RANGE
OPTICAL PROPERTIES
PLASMA DENSITY
RADIOWAVE RADIATION
SILANES
SILICON
SILICON NITRIDES
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0065-0273 K