Formation of manganese silicides on the Si(111)7 × 7 surface

Abstract

The initial stages of the growth of manganese films on the Si(111)7 × 7 surface at room temperature and reactions of solid-phase synthesis of manganese silicides, which occur during annealing these films in the temperature range up to 600°C, have been investigated using high-energy-resolution photoelectron spectroscopy with synchrotron radiation. It has been shown that the deposition of manganese on the silicon surface leads to the formation of interfacial manganese silicide and a film of the silicon solid solution in manganese. The growth of a metallic manganese film begins after the deposition of ∼6 A Mn. The segregation of silicon is observed in the coverage range of 17 A Mn. The annealing of the sample with a coverage of 25 A Mn in the temperature range of 200–400°C leads to the formation of a Mn-Si solid solution and manganese monosilicide. A further increase in the temperature to 600°C results in the transformation of MnSi into the semiconductor silicide MnSi1.7.