Chemical Structure of Native Oxide Grown on Hydrogenterminated Silicon Surfaces

Abstract

ABSTRACTChemical bonding features and suboxide compositions in native oxide grown on chemically-cleaned hydrogen-terminated Si(100) surfaces stored in pure water have been studied by using surface sensitive infrared spectroscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The LO phonon peak for the native oxide is located at 1210cm−1, which is shifted to a significantly lower wavenumber side than the ultrathin thermal oxide peak at 1250cm−1. This is because an appreciable amount of SiHx bonds are incorporated in the native oxide/Si interface and such hydrogen termination in the network dramatically reduces strained bonds in the interface. Very weak Si2+ suboxide signal from the oxide grown in pure water is also explained by the incorporated SiHx bonds which interrupt the Si2+ suboxide formation in the interface.