Quasi in situ observation of Si lateral solid phase epitaxy

Abstract

A quasi in situ observation of Si lateral solid phase epitaxy (L-SPE) has been carried out by an anneal-and-observe technique using a transmission electron microscope (TEM). For this observation, 3 mm Ø Si discs, which were thinned physically and chemically, were cut from a non-heated sample which had been prepared by depositing an amorphous Si (a-Si) film on the patterned amorphous insulator substrate. For the L-SPE growth, the thin specimens were heated in a furnace. The same areas of the same sample were repeatedly observed after an additional heating process at each interval. The direct origin of the (111) facet formation during the L-SPE growth has been precisely revealed by this method. Polygrains due to the random nucleation from the a-Si/a-insulator interface have been found to obstruct further L-SPE growth, while the L-SPE growth continued in the adjacent polygrain-free regions. As a result of this non-uniform growth rate, the (111) facets which nucleated at the polygrains grew into V-shaped valleys and finally caused a zig-zag growth front.