Formation of thin Crsi2 films by the solid-phase ion-plasma method and their thermoelectric properties

Abstract

ABSTRACT CrSi2 thin films with different thicknesses obtained on the Si(111) surface by magnetron sputtering method have been investigated using complex of electron spectroscopy and microscopy methods. The thin films’ composition, surface morphology, and cross-section, as well as the resistivity’s, Seebeck coefficient’s, and power factor’s temperature dependences have been studied for the first time. It has been established that, starting from a thickness of ~ 400 Å (deposition time ~ 60 sec), the SiO2/Si(111) surface is completely covered with an amorphous CrSi2 film. After heating the CrSi2/SiO2/Si(111) system at T ≈ 750 K, a homogeneous polycrystalline CrSi2/SiO2/Si(111) film is formed. It is shown that the resistivity ρ, the Seebeck coefficient S, and the power factor P of a CrSi2/SiO2/Si(111) film of different thicknesses (80 and 180 nm) change nonlinearly with increasing temperature. Their values for CrSi2 films of different thicknesses differ slightly from each other.