Role of a 193 nm ArF Excimer Laser in Laser-Assisted Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition of SiNx for Low Temperature Thin Film Encapsulation

Abstract

In this study, silicon nitride thin films are deposited on organic polyethylene-naphthalate (PEN) substrates by laser assisted plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (LAPECVD) at a low temperature (150 °C) for the purpose of evaluating the encapsulation performance. A plasma generator is placed above the sample stage as conventional plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) configuration, and the excimer laser beam of 193 nm wavelength illuminated in parallel to the sample surface is coupled to the reaction zone between the sample and plasma source. Major roles of the laser illumination in LAPECVD process are to compete with or complement the plasma decomposition of reactant gases. While a laser mainly decomposes ammonia molecules in the plasma, it also contributes to the photolysis of silane in the plasma state, possibly through the resulting hydrogen radicals and the excitation of intermediate disilane products. It will also be shown that the LAPECVD with coupled laser illumination of 193 nm wavelength improves the deposition rate of silicon nitride thin film, and the encapsulation performance evaluated via the measurement of water vapor transmission rate (WVTR).

Emerging laser-assisted vacuum processes for ultra-precision, high-yield manufacturing

“…119 By applying the 193 nm argon fluoride (ArF) pulsed laser, deficiencies, such as ion bombardment due to direct plasma exposure, residual stress formation in the deposited film, and low gas dissociation rate, are significantly resolved. 120 Particularly, the laser-assisted encapsulation processes present the most stable lifetime characteristics, which do not fall behind the glass encapsulation method (Fig. 6b).…”

Interfacial Oxidized Gate Insulators for Low-Power Oxide Thin-Film Transistors

“…The usual ways of depositing a gate dielectric are vacuum processes such as plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), sputtering, and atomic layer deposition (ALD). , The deposition of a thin gate dielectric is one way to decrease the operating voltage of a TFT. − For a thin high-dielectric gate insulator, aluminum anodic oxidation was applied to obtain an IGZO TFT with a 1 V operation voltage. ,− …”

Editorial for the Special Issue on the ICAE 2019

“…In this Special Issue, 10 technical papers are published on piezoelectric devices [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ], biomedical devices [ 5 , 6 ], micromachining [ 7 , 8 ], and complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) logic devices [ 9 , 10 ]. For the piezoelectric devices, high-density piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer array based on patterned aluminum nitride thin film is introduced for imaging application [ 1 ].…”

“…A three-dimensional (3D) microlithography system with ultraviolet-LED (UV-LED) and low-temperature thin-film encapsulation using silicon nitride thin films are presented for the work on micromachining [ 7 , 8 ]. Computer-controlled UV-LED lithography was implemented for 3D microfabrication with an array of UV-LED and a tilt-rotational sample holder for 3D light traces [ 7 ].…”

“…Computer-controlled UV-LED lithography was implemented for 3D microfabrication with an array of UV-LED and a tilt-rotational sample holder for 3D light traces [ 7 ]. Reference [ 8 ] investigates the role of an argon fluoride excimer laser beam with 193 nm wavelength in depositing silicon nitride thin films by laser-assisted plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition based on silane–ammonia gas mixtures toward encapsulation of polyethylene–naphthalate flexible substrates [ 8 ].…”