Suppression of oxidation-induced stacking fault generation in argon ambient annealing with controlled oxygen and the effect upon bulk defects
✍ Scribed by Toshiharu Suzuki
- Publisher
- Elsevier Science
- Year
- 2002
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 144 KB
- Volume
- 5
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 1369-8001
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✦ Synopsis
The effect of oxygen partial pressure during annealing in argon on the suppression of the generation and growth of oxidation-induced stacking faults (OSFs) was investigated by precisely and widely controlling the oxygen partial pressure. Similarly to the case of OSF in the surface region, the generation of OSFs in the deep region of substrate was effectively suppressed by an annealing with the oxygen partial pressure below the critical value of 6 Â 10 À3 atm. The formation of precipitation was also decreased throughout the substrate. Mechanism by which the generation of OSFs was suppressed has been attributed to the oxidation mechanism in these oxygen partial pressures. It is suggested that an electric field is built across the oxide layer when the oxygen partial pressure is below the critical value. The electric field causes silicon interstitials and impurities, such as metals, to drift from the substrate to the outer surface of the oxide. During the annealing the origins of OSFs, such as Si-O clusters and metallic impurities, are eliminated and any mechanical damage is annealed out before climbing to the nuclei of the OSFs. It is suggested that Si interstitials and metallic impurities deep in the substrate are also eliminated by the diffusion, when their concentration at the surface region is decreased.