Silicon carbon alloy thin film depositions using electron cyclotron resonance microwave plasmas

Amorphous and microcrystalline silicon carbon films (a-SiC:H, μc-SiC:H) have been deposited using SiH₄, CH₄ and H₂ mixed gas ECR (electron cyclotron resonance) plasmas. The optical bandgap of a-SiC:H films is not dependent on the hydrogen dilution in the ECR plasma. The deposition rate of a-SiC:H films is found to be strongly dependent on the ECR magnetic field and the hydrogen dilution The hydrogen dilution effect on the deposition rate indicates that the etching in ECR hydrogen plasmas plays an important role in the deposition of a-SiC:H films. The optical constants n and k of ECR-deposited a-SiC:H films in the wavelength region of 0.4 to 1.0 μm are determined to be 2.03-1.90 and 0.04-0.00, respectively. The microstructures of ECR-deposited μc-SiC:H films are shown by X-ray diffraction and SEM, (scanning electron microscopy) to be composed of 1000-A α-SiC microcrystallites and amorphous network structures