The phase formation and the morphological stability of ε1-Cu3Ge and ε1-Cu3(Si1−xGex) in Cu/epitaxial-Ge(e-Ge)/(111)Ge, Cu/(001)Ge, Cu/e-Ge/(111)Si, and Cu/(001)Si–Ge alloys have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy in conjunction with the energy dispersive spectrometry as well as by sheet resistance measurement. Epitaxial Cu and epitaxial ζ-Cu5Ge were found to form in as-deposited Cu/e-Ge/(111)Ge and Cu/e-Ge/(111)Si. On the other hand, textured Cu was found to form in the other systems. Polycrystalline ε1-Cu3Ge and ε1-Cu3(Si1−xGex) were the only phases formed in 150–500 °C annealed Cu/Ge and (Cu/e–Ge/Si and Cu/Si–Ge alloys) systems, respectively. They were found to agglomerate at 550 °C. The room-temperature oxidation of substrate in the presence of Cu3(Si1−xGex) was found only in the Cu/Si0.7Ge0.3 system. From the sheet resistance measurement, ε1-Cu3Ge has the lowest resistivity of 7 μΩ cm after 400 °C annealing. The electrical resistivity was found to decrease with the Ge content.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.