Chemisorption of tert-butanol on Si(1 0 0)

The chemisorption of tert-butanol, an important product in atomic layer deposition (ALD) of ZrO2 from the precursor, zirconium tetra-tert-butoxide, on Si(1 0 0)−(2 × 1), has been investigated using Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD). The main desorption products of the TPD experiments are isobutene and molecular hydrogen. A comparison of TPD results obtained with a clean silicon surface with that from a hydrogen-terminated Si surface indicates no chemisorption in the latter case. AES measurements reveal the presence of carbon on the sample after TPD; the amount of carbon tracks the isobutene yield in TPD experiments. A comparison is made of observations with those expected from the known reactions of simple alcohols on Si(1 0 0)−(2 × 1) and the chemisorption attributed dominantly to O–H bond scission to yield an H and tert-butoxy-group-terminated surface.