Effects of the presence of native silicon oxide at the Fe/Si interface on the formation of silicides studied by Auger spectroscopy

Auger Si LVV lineshape analysis of porous p‐type silicon electroplated with Fe–Co alloys

“…On the other hand, the spectrum relative to PPS presents the same characteristic as the lineshape of Si L 23 VV in silicides. 4,5 Thus, it is possible that Si atoms in the PPS skeleton are linked to Co atoms, which will be emphasized in the following discussion.…”

Silicide formation in contacts to Si nanowires

“…In both cases, the oxide is found to inhibit the growth of silicides at room temperatures, but silicides still form at temperatures of 450-580°C. In studies without the oxide, silicon was found to be the dominate diffusing species [32,35,39]. On the other hand, it was found that SiO x acts as a diffusion barrier to silicon, which allows the diffusion of iron to become dominant.…”

“…Formation temperature ranges varied from: 450 to 600°C for Fe 3 Si, 500 to 700°C for FeSi, and 550 to 750°C for b-FeSi 2 . Reports for the growth of Fe 3 Si range after the Fe pad is consumed [35], in mixed phases with other silicides [38], to not forming at all [39][40][41]. Lau et al reported the formation of Fe 3 Si from solid solution via a disorder-order transition [32].…”

“…The oxygen can originate as a surface oxide [38] or trapped in the metal during deposition [39]. In both cases, the oxide is found to inhibit the growth of silicides at room temperatures, but silicides still form at temperatures of 450-580°C.…”

Chemical information from Auger data using factor analysis: Some examples

“…Other experimental details are described elsewhere. 14 The data matrix has been prepared by putting aside the Si spectra acquired at increasing Fe coverages plus the reference spectra of the pure silicon, FeSi, and FeSi, added in triplicate to increase their statistical weight ( Fig. 3(a)).…”