Formation of porous grain boundaries in polycrystalline silicon thin films

Abstract

Unique polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin films, which were permeable to a concentrated hydrofluoric acid solution through their porous grain boundaries, were investigated to elucidate the formation mechanism of their microstructure. 0.1-μm-thick permeable poly-Si thin films were made through processes of amorphous silicon film formation by low pressure chemical vapor deposition, successive postannealing for crystallization, and excess phosphorus diffusion by a phosphorus oxichloride predeposition. At the grain boundaries, porous microstructures were formed after the films were cleaned in an SC1 solution (a 1:1:5 mixture of NH4OH:H2O2:H2O at 80 °C for 10 min), whereas segregated soluble precipitates observed by a field emission secondary electron microscope were present before the SC1 cleaning. Auger electron microscope revealed that the surface of the precipitates mainly consist of silicon (∼80 at. %) and oxygen (∼20 at. %). As a result of transmission electron microscope observation, it is concluded that enhancement of silicon atom mobility by the phosphorus doping process induced consequent segregation of the soluble precipitates at the grain boundaries.