Effects of oxygen in Ni films on Ni-induced lateral crystallization of amorphous silicon films at various temperatures

Abstract

Effects of oxygen in Ni films on the Ni-induced lateral crystallization (NILC) of amorphous silicon (a-Si) films at various temperatures have been investigated. It was found that oxygen in Ni films retarded the nucleation of polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) from a-Si, but had little effect on the growth rate of poly-Si. This is because that needed an incubation period to be reduced to Ni metal for the subsequent mediated crystallization of a-Si.