Rapid thermal chemical vapor deposition of in-situ boron doped polycrystalline SIxGe1-x

Abstract

In-situ doped polycrystalline SixGe1-x (x = 0.7) alloys were deposited by rapid thermal chemical vapor deposition (RTCVD) using the reactive gases SiH2Cl2, GeH4 and B2H6 in a H2 carrier gas. The depositions were performed at a total pressure of 4.0 Torr and at temperatures 600° C, 650° C and 700° C and different B2H6 flow rates. The conditions were chosen to achieve high doping levels in the deposited films. Our results indicate negligible effect of B2H6 flow on the deposition rate. The depositions follow an Arrhenius type behavior with an activation energy of 25 kcal/mole. Boron incorporation in the films was found to follow a simple kinetic model with higher boron levels at lower deposition rates and higher B2H6 flow rates. As-deposited resistivities as low as 2 mΩ-cm were obtained. Rapid thermal annealing (RTA) in the temperature range 800-1000° C was found to reduce the resistivity only marginally due to the high levels of boron activation achieved during the deposition process. The results indicate that polycrystalline SixGe1-x films can be deposited by RTCVD with resistivities comparable to those reported for in-situ doped polysilicon.