Abstract
AbstractWe have studied the oxidation mechanism of SiGe alloys, prepared by UHV/CVD. Ge is found to be completely rejected from the oxide and to pile up at the oxide/substrate interface. In the case of thick SiGe layers, this can give rise to very heavily concentrated layers of SiGe (up to 80% Ge) several hundreds of angstroms thick between the oxide and the substrate. The oxidation of Si then proceeds by Si diffusing though the Ge-rich layer. When only a thin layer of Ge is present on top of Si at the start, it acts as a marker, moving, unchanged, with the SiO2/Si interface. The rate of oxidation is enhanced in this case. The atomic motion and chemical reactions involved in the process are discussed and possible mechanisms are described to explain the data. Oxidation of a SiGeB sample is also discussed and compared with the previous case.
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