Highly efficient generation of high-energy photons and low-temperature oxidation of a crystal silicon surface with O 1D radicals

Abstract

High-energy photons (Lyman-α) with strong intensity can be generated by an energy transfer mechanism in He + H 2 mixture plasma. In this mechanism, the initial step is the excitation of helium atoms to the metastable 1s 12s 1 configuration, and collisional excitation transfer occurs between the excited helium and hydrogen molecules. On the basis of the mechanism, the generation of high-energy photons due to the Rydberg transition of atomic oxygen is attempted. Both in the He + O 2 and Ne + O 2 mixture plasma, highly efficient generation of high-energy photons (9.5 eV) is observed. In addition, the former mixture generates O 1D radicals which are known as a very active radical, as a by-product of the high-energy photons; the latter generates O 3P because of the lower energy of the metastable state of Ne. Using the O 1D radicals, a low-temperature oxidation of a crystal silicon surface is attempted.