Stabilization of amorphous structure in silicon thin film by adding germanium

Abstract

The stabilization of the amorphous structure in amorphous silicon film by adding Ge atoms was studied using Raman spectroscopy. Amorphous Si1−xGex (x = 0.0, 0.03, 0.14, and 0.27) films were deposited on glass substrates from electron beam evaporation sources and annealed in N2 atmosphere. The change in the amorphous states and the phase transition from amorphous to crystalline were characterized using the TO, LO, and LA phonons in the Raman spectra. The temperature of the transition from the amorphous phase to the crystalline phase was higher for the a-Si1−xGex (x = 0.03, 0.14) films, and the crystallization was hindered. The reason why the addition of a suitable quantity of Ge atoms into the three-dimensional amorphous silicon network stabilizes its amorphous structure is discussed based on the changes in the Raman signals of the TO, LO, and LA phonons during annealing. The characteristic bond length of the Ge atoms allows them to stabilize the random network of the amorphous Si composed of quasi-tetrahedral Si units, and obstruct its rearrangement.