RBS and AES depth profiles of Pd deposited on Si after annealing at different temperatures

Abstract

AbstractPalladium silicide films were obtained after annealing thermally evaporated Pd layers on <111> p‐type Si substrates. The silicide layers formed at different temperatures were characterized by Rutherford backscattering (RBS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). A quantification of the AES depth profiles was made by comparing the profiles with the RBS results. The sputtering time scale was converted into a depth scale using the values of the sputtering yields calculated from the RBS thickness and the AES sputter times. The transformation of the measured Auger intensities into concentration allowed a quantitative study of preferential sputtering in Pd2Si, taking into account the composition given by RBS. Finally we estimated the depth resolution of the AES profiles by comparing the width of the interfaces obtained from both techniques.