Composition limited hydrogen effusion rate of a-SiNx:H passivation stack

Jafari, Sahar; Hirsch, Jens; Lausch, Dominik; John, Marco; Bernhard, Norbert; Meyer, Sylke

doi:10.1063/1.5123853

Cited by 17 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Consequently, molecular hydrogen was formed, which was then released either to the environment or towards the substrate, playing an important role in the densification of the layer as well as in the formation of its passivation behavior [ 31 ]. A similar surface deformation (surface blistering) was found by Jafari et al [ 73 ] for PE-CVD SiNx:H thin films (presented in Section 2.5 ), wherein RF sputtered SiNx:H thin films at an even lower temperature (~65 °C). Figure 4 presents the scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of the a-SiNx:H layer surfaces prior to and after the heat treatment.…”

Section: Physical Vapor Depositionsupporting

confidence: 80%

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Silicon Nitride and Hydrogenated Silicon Nitride Thin Films: A Review of Fabrication Methods and Applications

Hegedűs

Balázsi

2021

Materials

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Silicon nitride (SiNx) and hydrogenated silicon nitride (SiNx:H) thin films enjoy widespread scientific interest across multiple application fields. Exceptional combination of optical, mechanical, and thermal properties allows for their utilization in several industries, from solar and semiconductor to coated glass production. The wide bandgap (~5.2 eV) of thin films allows for its optoelectronic application, while the SiNx layers could act as passivation antireflective layers or as a host matrix for silicon nano-inclusions (Si-ni) for solar cell devices. In addition, high water-impermeability of SiNx makes it a potential candidate for barrier layers of organic light emission diodes (OLEDs). This work presents a review of the state-of-the-art process techniques and applications of SiNx and SiNx:H thin films. We focus on the trends and latest achievements of various deposition processes of recent years. Historically, different kinds of chemical vapor deposition (CVD), such as plasma enhanced (PE-CVD) or hot wire (HW-CVD), as well as electron cyclotron resonance (ECR), are the most common deposition methods, while physical vapor deposition (PVD), which is primarily sputtering, is also widely used. Besides these fabrication methods, atomic layer deposition (ALD) is an emerging technology due to the fact that it is able to control the deposition at the atomic level and provide extremely thin SiNx layers. The application of these three deposition methods is compared, while special attention is paid to the effect of the fabrication method on the properties of SiNx thin films, particularly the optical, mechanical, and thermal properties.

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Section: Physical Vapor Depositionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…Jafari et al [ 73 ] performed hydrogen effusion measurements for SiNx:H thin films prepared by PE-CVD from NH 3 and SiH 4 gases. Additional FTIR measurements revealed that the peak corresponding to the hydrogen effusion was shifted from 550 °C to 800 °C due to the change of the hydrogen bonding from Si–H to N–H bonds.…”

Section: Chemical Vapor Depositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicon Nitride and Hydrogenated Silicon Nitride Thin Films: A Review of Fabrication Methods and Applications

Hegedűs

Balázsi

2021

Materials

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“…The out-diffusion of hydrogen due to annealing plays a prominent role in the densification of thin films. The temperature of 800 • C was considered as a critical temperature, since the a-SiN x thin films are often subjected to thermal processes including rapid thermal annealing [33]. Morphological investigations of the thin film's surface before (Figure 8a) and after (Figure 8b) annealing show that the surface of a-SiN x :H thin film changes due to heat treatment (Figure 8).…”

Section: Structural and Morphological Characterizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Examination of the Hydrogen Incorporation into Radio Frequency-Sputtered Hydrogenated SiNx Thin Films

et al. 2021

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In this work, amorphous hydrogen-free silicon nitride (a-SiNx) and amorphous hydrogenated silicon nitride (a-SiNx:H) films were deposited by radio frequency (RF) sputtering applying various amounts of hydrogen gas. Structural and optical properties were investigated as a function of hydrogen concentration. The refractive index of 1.96 was characteristic for hydrogen-free SiNx thin film and with increasing H2 flow it decreased to 1.89. The hydrogenation during the sputtering process affected the porosity of the thin film compared with hydrogen-free SiNx. A higher porosity is consistent with a lower refractive index. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed the presence of 4 at.% of bounded hydrogen, while elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) confirmed that 6 at.% hydrogen was incorporated during the growing mechanism. The molecular form of hydrogen was released at a temperature of ~65 °C from the film after annealing, while the blisters with 100 nm diameter were created on the thin film surface. The low activation energy deduced from the Arrhenius method indicated the diffusion of hydrogen molecules.

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“…A further method is an effusion analysis as reported, e.g., by Beyer . Recently, we have reported about a simplified setup . With this setup, the kinetics of the hydrogen effusion and diffusion can be determined in combination with various heat ramp profiles as they also occur during production processes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[ 7 ] Recently, we have reported about a simplified setup. [ 8 ] With this setup, the kinetics of the hydrogen effusion and diffusion can be determined in combination with various heat ramp profiles as they also occur during production processes. During analyzing the effusion spectra, the phenomena of single sharp peaks (SPs) have occurred.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Occurrence of Sharp Hydrogen Effusion Peaks of Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Film and Its Connection to Void Structures

Jafari

Steffens

Wendt

et al. 2020

Physica Status Solidi (b)

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The amount of hydrogen released from plasma‐enhanced chemical vapor (PECVD) deposited hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a‐Si:H) layers is determined by gas effusion measurements. A sharp peak (SP) is observed in the effusion spectra of samples with substrate temperature TS ≥ 200 °C. Light microscopic images indicate the formation of bubbles after deposition for all samples and film deterioration after effusion measurement in correlation with the presence of the hydrogen SPs. Change in substrate temperature varies with the microstructure of the film, the hydrogen concentration, and the density. A low TS leads to a porous structure with large number of interface bubbles, and therefore no hydrogen‐induced SP appears during hydrogen effusion. Whereas high TS causes a compact a‐Si:H film in which the hydrogen effusion is limited by the longer diffusion, while the number of interface bubbles decreases. The storage of near substrate hydrogen in the bubbles in compact material leads to a local explosion by increase in excessive pressure. The difference between the low temperature peak and the position of the SP in the effusion spectra indicates the time required to fill the interface bubbles with hydrogen, which decreases with increasing film density, suggesting that the volume of the interface bubble decreases.

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Composition limited hydrogen effusion rate of a-SiNx:H passivation stack

Cited by 17 publications

References 17 publications

Silicon Nitride and Hydrogenated Silicon Nitride Thin Films: A Review of Fabrication Methods and Applications

Silicon Nitride and Hydrogenated Silicon Nitride Thin Films: A Review of Fabrication Methods and Applications

Examination of the Hydrogen Incorporation into Radio Frequency-Sputtered Hydrogenated SiNx Thin Films

Occurrence of Sharp Hydrogen Effusion Peaks of Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Film and Its Connection to Void Structures

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