Hydrogen interaction with semiconductor surfaces

Abstract

Abstract This paper is a status report upon hydrogen interaction with surfaces of elemental semiconductors (Si), alloys (Ge x Si 1− x ) and III–V compound semiconductors (GaAs, InP). Primarily, highresolution electron energy-loss (HREELS) data are reported. It is shown that atomic hydrogen may be used as a marker for the determination of active sites on differently prepared semiconductor interfaces. For a more complete characterization of its local atomic structure, results from other surface sensitive techniques (LEED, Auger, XPS, SXPS) are included. In addition, systematic chemical shifts of Si- and Ge-hydrogen vibrational stretching modes were measured for different oxidation stages in the submonolayer range at Si(100) and at Ge x Si 1− x (100) surfaces. The latter observations are explained by the electronegativity of the next- and second-nearest neighbors of the hydrogen atoms.