Articles you may be interested inTungsten silicide composition analysis by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, Auger electron spectroscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy Analysis of iridium-aluminum thin films by xray photoelectron spectroscopy and Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A 8, 2251 (1990); 10.1116/1.576745The characterization of titanium nitride by xray photoelectron spectroscopy and Rutherford backscattering J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A 8, 99 (1990); 10.1116/1.576995Auger electron and xray photoelectron spectroscopy of sputter deposited aluminum nitride Auger and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA) data ofTiN x were analyzed as a function of film composition as established by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS). The overlap of the N(KVV) and Ti(LMM) Auger transitions necessitated the assessment of two methods previously proposed for the derivative spectra. These results were compared with peak height and peak area measurements (after background subtraction) of the well-separated N ( Is) and Ti (2p) ESCA photoemissions. Neither the Auger nor the ESCA N/Ti intensity ratios scaled linearly with the N/Ti compositional ratios determined by RBS, especially for low nitrogen content. This behavior most likely results from ion-bombardment-induced losses of nitrogen in those phases with dissolved nitrogen rather than from an increased satellite emission in the Ti (2p) spectra from the near-stoichiometric nitride. In terms of precision and analysis speed, the Auger peak-to-peak quantification methods are preferred over ESCA quantification. In the nearstoichiometric phase (N/Tiz 1), RBS analysis shows higher sensitivity to nitrogen compositional changes than either ESCA or Auger.

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Polymer Multi-Layer (PML) processing is a high speed industrial scale process for depositing thin polymer films. Moving substrates of arbitrary width can have one micron (typ.) polymer films deposited at speeds measured in hundreds of meters per minute. A wide variety of chemical functionality available in the precursor materials allows a variety of chemical, electrical, and optical applications. The polymer characteristics can be further augmented by subsequent deposition of inorganic materials. Recent advances with dielectric, electrolytic, photonic, barrier, chemical affinity, energetic, and piezoelectric thin film polymer materials are discussed.

A rapid thermal anneal (RTA) in an NH3 ambient has been found to increase the thermal stability of W films chemically vapor deposited (CVD) on Si. W films deposited onto single-crystal Si by low-pressure CVD were rapid thermal annealed at temperatures between 500 and 1100 °C in NH3 and Ar ambients. The reactions were studied using Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, x-ray diffraction, Auger electron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and four-point resistivity probe. High-temperature (≥1000 °C) RTA in Ar completely converted W into the low resistivity (31 μΩ cm) tetragonal WSi2 phase. In contrast, after a prior 900 °C RTA in NH3, N inclusion within the W film and at the W/Si interface almost completely suppressed the W-Si reaction. Detailed examination, however, revealed some patches of WSi2 formed at the interface accompanied by long tunnels extending into the substrate, and some crystalline precipitates in the substrate close to the interface. The associated interfacial contact resistance was only slightly altered by the 900 °C NH3 anneal. The NH3-treated W film acted as a diffusion barrier in an Al/W/Si contact metallurgy up to at least 550 °C, at which point some increase in contact resistance was measured.