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Mechanical Properties of Thermally Crystallized Boron-Doped Silicon Thin Films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2011

P. Scafidi ,
J. Cali  and
E. Bustarret
P. Scafidi
Affiliation:
LEPES-CNRS, 25 av. des Martyrs, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France.
J. Cali
Affiliation:
LEPES-CNRS, 25 av. des Martyrs, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France.
E. Bustarret
Affiliation:
LEPES-CNRS, 25 av. des Martyrs, BP 166, F-38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France.
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Abstract

P-type polycrystalline silicon films on silicon wafers were obtained by annealing at 575 °C boron-doped amorphous hydrogenated silicon (a-Si:H) films. During the anneal, the internal stress of the film changed from compression to tension. The crystallization kinetics became faster when increasing the boron concentration. The hardness and elastic modulus of each film were determined by nanoindentation. The elastic modulus increased systematically upon crystallization. Wafer curvature monitoring during the thermal cycle allowed us to derive the thermal expansion coefficient of a-Si:H for different boron doping levels. Above a critical temperature of 320°C, the internal stress of the a-Si:H films rapidly changed toward a tensile state, independent of the boron concentration. Analysis of the hydrogen-bonding configurations by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated that this rapid stress change was due to hydrogen out-diffusion. The evolution of the internal stress with time was followed during the 575°C crystallization isothermal plateau. The circular blistering and spalling observed upon annealing in some cases of low doping levels was correlated with the presence of microvoids and with the internal stress of the a-Si:H film.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 403: Symposium I – Polycrystalline Thin Films: Structure, Texture, Properties and Applications II , 1995 , 379
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1996

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