Low-temperature silicon oxidation using oxidizing radicals produced by catalytic decomposition of H2O/H2 on heated tungsten wire

Abstract

The surface oxidization of Si(100) substrates by oxidizing species generated by the catalytic decomposition of H2O precursors on a heated tungsten wire in a mixed H2O/H2 gas atmosphere was investigated. The formation of Si oxide layers was realized at stage temperatures of not more than 350 °C. From X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements, their thicknesses were estimated to be 1–2 nm. In the tungsten wire temperature range from 1000 to 1450 °C, the oxidation of the wire was suppressed at H2O/H2 ratios of not more than 0.2%, which hardly caused tungsten contamination of the oxide layers.