Interface Structure of an Epitaxial Iron Silicide on Si(111) Studied with X-Ray Diffraction

Abstract

Atomic structures of iron-silicide ultra-thin films epitaxial grown on Si(111) were investigated by x-ray crystal-truncation-rod scattering measurements. Two films, each of them respectively exhibited 1×1 and 2×2 periodicities in ultra high vacuum, were measured with the x-ray diffraction under ambient air. Both of the films showed essentially the same Laue peaks. The Laue peaks directly indicate that both films have the CsCl-type (so-called c-FeSi) structure whose stacking orientation is rotated by 180° with respect to the substrate. Quantitative structural analysis, which includes degree of the film roughness as fit parameters, reveals that the interfacial Fe atom is 8-fold coordinated to Si atoms (so-called B8 model). The determined interlayer spacing in the silicide film and the Fe-Si bond length at the interface are respectively ∼6 % and ∼9 % larger than those in the hypothetical c-FeSi. [DOI: 10.1380/ejssnt.2009.513]