Silicon oxynitride films with varying oxygen/nitrogen ratio were grown from SiH4, N2O, and NH3 by means of a plasma-enchanced chemical vapor deposition process. The elemental composition of the deposited films was measured by a variety of high-energy ion beam techniques. To determine the chemical structure we used Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy and electron-spin resonance. Ellipsometric data and values for mechanical stress are also reported. We show that the entire range of compositions from silicon oxide to silicon nitride can be covered by applying two different processes and by adjusting the N2O/NH3 gas flow ratio of the respective processes. It is suggested that the N2O/SiH4 gas flow ratio is the major deposition characterization parameter, which also controls the chemical structure as far as the hydrogen bonding configuration is concerned. We found that the films contain significant amounts of excess silicon and that the mechanical stress in the oxynitrides is lower than in plasma nitride. The electron-spin density is low (∼1017/cm3) in all samples.

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It is shown that with a combination of high energy ion beam methods, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry and elastic recoil detection, the elemental composition of borophosphosilicate glass (SiO,P,B,N,Ht) can be determined without reference to an external standard. Both thin (< 100 nm) and thick films can be analysed, provided the latter are homogeneous over the layer thickness. Some results pertinent to the B and P uptake during the deposition are briefly discussed.

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