The effect of germanium ion implantation dose on the amorphization and recrystallization of polycrystalline silicon films

Abstract

Polycrystalline Si films have been amorphized by implantation with 130-KeV Ge ions and subsequently recrystallized by conventional heat treatment. It is found that, after amorphization with a low ion dose, recrystallization produces a structure which is morphologically similar to the original film. By contrast, after high Ge dose implantation, recrystallization proceeds dendritically. An initial rationale for this behavior is proposed in terms of the lattice disorder introduced by ion implantation.