A new process to manufacture thin SiGe and SiGeC epitaxial films on silicon by ion implantation and excimer laser annealing

Epitaxial Si1yyCy and Si1yxyyGexCy alloy layers are grown on monocrystalline silicon substrates by multiple energy ion implantation of Ge and C into single Si crystals followed by pulse excimer laser annealing. The properties of the alloy layers are determined precisely using spectroscopic ellipsometry SE., X-ray diffraction XRD.and Rutherford backscatter- ing RBS.techniques. We show that annealing energy densities higher than 2 Jrcm2 result in monocrystalline epitaxial layers with low quantity of defects. The lattice contraction due to the carbon inclusion increases with the implanted C concentration up to about 1.1%. For higher values a more complex behavior is observed with partial or total.relaxation of the layer andror carbide formation. With optimized condition, the growing of pseudomorphic epitaxial layers, from group IV semiconductor alloys was successful on large areas 1 Jrcm2over 40 cm2in one pulse.. q1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.