The growth kinetics of silicon nitride deposited from the SiH4–N2 reactant mixture in a remote plasma

Kessels, Wmm Erwin; Assche, van Fjh Ferdie; Oever, van den Pj Peter; Sanden, van de Mcm Richard

doi:10.1016/j.jnoncrysol.2004.02.017

Cited by 12 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…A preliminary study has shown that the densities of these radicals are all approximately ϳ10 11 cm −3 . From this perspective, it is expected that the role of N radicals in the Ar-NH 3 -SiH 4 plasma is similar to their role in the silicon nitride growth mechanism from N 2 -SiH 4 plasmas proposed by Smith et al 14 and Kessels et al 16,17 They showed that N radicals can insert into Si-Si backbonds of an a-Si: H-like layer that is created by impinging SiH x radicals. NH radicals on the other hand are not reactive with the growing film, as can be deduced from the measured surface reaction probability, while NH 2 radicals are reactive on the surface with a reaction probability of ϳ0.13.…”

Section: Implications For A-sin X : H Growth Mechanismmentioning

confidence: 57%

“…A similar change in the surface reaction probability ␤ = ␥ + s from ϳ0.007 for low SiH 4 flows to ϳ0.04 for higher SiH 4 flows was also observed by Kessels et al in the Ar-N 2 -H 2 -SiH 4 expanding plasma. 16,17 This change in the sticking probability s for higher SiH 4 flows is most likely caused by a higher SiH x flux to the surface creating more reactive surface sites available for N incorporation.…”

Section: B Surface Loss Probabilitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this refined growth mechanism an a-Si: H-like surface layer formed by predominantly SiH 3 radicals is converted into a-SiN x : H by nitridation reactions with impinging N radicals. 16,17 On the other hand, Smith et al 11,18 identified the aminosilane radical as the most important precursor for silicon nitride deposition in a NH 3 -SiH 4 radio frequency plasma using mass spectrometry. This result was supported by Beach and Jasinski ͑1990͒ who proposed a reaction mechanism for the formation of amino-silane radicals involving NH 2 radicals.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fisher and co-workers measured the surface interaction of NH and NH 2 radicals for different types of surfaces using laser induced fluorescence combined with a molecular beam setup. [23][24][25] For N radicals on stainless steel and silicon nitride surfaces, the surface reactivity has been summarized and extended by Kessels et al 17 based on the experimental results of Adams and Miller 26 and Singh et al 27 In this paper, we report the densities of the NH x radicals in a remote Ar-NH 3 -SiH 4 plasma and we focus on the role of these radicals in the deposition process of silicon nitride. In Sec.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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N, NH, and NH2 radical densities in a remote Ar–NH3–SiH4 plasma and their role in silicon nitride deposition

Oever

Helden

Hemmen

et al. 2006

Journal of Applied Physics

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The densities of N, NH, and NH2 radicals in a remote Ar–NH3–SiH4 plasma used for high-rate silicon nitride deposition were investigated for different gas mixtures and plasma settings using cavity ringdown absorption spectroscopy and threshold ionization mass spectrometry. For typical deposition conditions, the N, NH, and NH2 radical densities are on the order of 1012cm−3 and the trends with NH3 flow, SiH4 flow, and plasma source current are reported. We present a feasible reaction pathway for the production and loss of the NHx radicals that is consistent with the experimental results. Furthermore, mass spectrometry revealed that the consumption of NH3 was typically 40%, while it was over 80% for SiH4. On the basis of the measured N densities we deduced the recombination and sticking coefficient for N radicals on a silicon nitride film. Using this sticking coefficient and reported surface reaction probabilities of NH and NH2 radicals, we conclude that N and NH2 radicals are mainly responsible for the N incorporation in the silicon nitride film, while Si atoms are most likely brought to the surface in the form of SiHx radicals.

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Section: Implications For A-sin X : H Growth Mechanismmentioning

confidence: 57%

Section: B Surface Loss Probabilitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

N, NH, and NH2 radical densities in a remote Ar–NH3–SiH4 plasma and their role in silicon nitride deposition

Oever

Helden

Hemmen

et al. 2006

Journal of Applied Physics

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“…The growth kinetics of silicon nitride has been investigated by Smith et al, 3 and Smith, 4 Kessels et al 5 In a SiH 4 /NH 3 gas system, aminosilane Si͑NH 2 ͒ nϽ4 with low sticking coefficient promoting the growth of dense and compact thin film was concluded to be the key growth precursor. 3,4 In a SiH 4 /N 2 gas system, SiH 3 and N radicals were put forth to be the key growth precursor for the silicon nitride thin films, where no Si-N precursors are detected in the plasma.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of chemical bonds on the properties of SiN in thin film transistor liquid crystal display

Xie

Long

Deng

et al. 2007

Journal of Vacuum Science &Amp; Technology A: Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films

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The hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride (a-SiNx:H) thin films were produced in a radio-frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition system using NH3∕SiH4∕N2 mixture source gases at 330°C. In this study the authors determine the structural properties of a-SiNx:H thin films with Fourier transform infrared measurement and relate these to both the processing parameters and their physical/optical properties. The Si–H and N–H bond densities are affected by the processing parameters. They find that the plasma power density and chamber pressure play minor roles compared to the gas flow rate of SiH4, and the role of the electrode spacing is indistinctive. The Si–H, N–H, and Si–N bond densities are important parameters affecting the physical/optical properties of low deposition rate thin film (the thin films in the proximity of a-SiNx:H∕a-Si interface) and high deposition rate (HDR) thin film (bottom gate insulator thin films). The optical band gap (E04) could be tuned by the N radical density. The N radical density increases with increasing N–H and Si–N bond densities and decreasing Si–H bond density. The Si–N bond density and the Si and N dangling bonds enhance the dielectric constant, but the Si–H and N–H bond densities have different effects. The dielectric constant increases with increasing Si–H bond density for the HDR thin films, because the high plasma power density (>38.5W∕cm2) could break more Si–N bonds. Finally, process parameters are obtained for optimized performance of the thin film transistors.

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Global optimization of process parameters for low-temperature SiNx based on orthogonal experiments

Yang

Zhang²,

Li³

et al. 2022

Adv. Manuf.

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The growth kinetics of silicon nitride deposited from the SiH4–N2 reactant mixture in a remote plasma

Cited by 12 publications

References 16 publications

N, NH, and NH2 radical densities in a remote Ar–NH3–SiH4 plasma and their role in silicon nitride deposition

N, NH, and NH2 radical densities in a remote Ar–NH3–SiH4 plasma and their role in silicon nitride deposition

Effect of chemical bonds on the properties of SiN in thin film transistor liquid crystal display

Global optimization of process parameters for low-temperature SiNx based on orthogonal experiments

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