Preparation of thin film polycrystalline silicon on glass by photo-thermal annealing

Photo-thermal annealing (PTA) was utilized for solid-phase crystallization of amorphous silicon films below 600°C. Amorphous silicon was deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and annealed by tungsten halogen lamps heating. The PTA process can crystallize amorphous silicon in less duration, with lower thermal budget than traditional furnace annealing. The role of photons in facilitating crystallization was given special attention. Application of the material to electronic devices such as solar cells and thin film transistors (TFT) is the aim of our research.