Observation of dust particle growth and fallout in RF-excited silane discharges

Author

Bohme, W. ; Kohler, W.E. ; Romheld, M. ; Veprek, S. ; Seebock, R.J.

Author_Institution

Res. Labs., Siemens AG, Erlangen, Germany

Volume

22

Issue

2

fYear

1994

fDate

4/1/1994 12:00:00 AM

Firstpage

110

Lastpage

115

Abstract

Particles formed during plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition of amorphous silicon thin films which fall to the film surface, either during or after the process, may have a severely deleterious effect on film properties. In order to understand the mechanisms of particle formation and fallout we have investigated the growth and dynamics of particles in RF discharges in pure silane. The diameter of particles formed within the first 20 s of the discharge was investigated by electron microscopy of substrates with fallen out particles. Furthermore we used a He-Ne laser in combination with a diode array camera to measure temporally and spatially resolved light scattering from particles and deduced their sinking speed after switching off the discharge. The results are compared to a theoretical model on the particle dynamics

Keywords

amorphous semiconductors; dust; elemental semiconductors; high-frequency discharges; plasma CVD; plasma diagnostics by laser beam; semiconductor device manufacture; semiconductor thin films; silicon; silicon compounds; solar cells; 20 s; He-Ne laser; RF-excited silane discharges; Si:H; SiH₄; SiH₄ discharge; a-Si:H solar cell production; amorphous Si thin films; diode array camera; discharge; dust particle fallout; dust particle growth; electron microscopy; film properties; light scattering; mechanisms; particle formation; plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition; sinking speed; Amorphous silicon; Chemical vapor deposition; Plasma chemistry; Plasma properties; Radio frequency; Semiconductor films; Semiconductor laser arrays; Semiconductor thin films; Sputtering; Surface discharges;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Plasma Science, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0093-3813

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/27.279012

Filename

279012