GB2176054A - Preparation of amorphous silicon semiconductors - Google Patents

Preparation of amorphous silicon semiconductors Download PDF

Info

Publication number
GB2176054A
GB2176054A GB8613076A GB8613076A GB2176054A GB 2176054 A GB2176054 A GB 2176054A GB 8613076 A GB8613076 A GB 8613076A GB 8613076 A GB8613076 A GB 8613076A GB 2176054 A GB2176054 A GB 2176054A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
amorphous silicon
preparation
substrate
hydrogen
silicon semiconductors
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
GB8613076A
Other versions
GB8613076D0 (en
Inventor
Michael John Thwaites
Prof John Howard Purnell
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
BP PLC
Original Assignee
BP PLC
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by BP PLC filed Critical BP PLC
Publication of GB8613076D0 publication Critical patent/GB8613076D0/en
Publication of GB2176054A publication Critical patent/GB2176054A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02—Manufacture or treatment of semiconductor devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02104—Forming layers
    • H01L21/02365—Forming inorganic semiconducting materials on a substrate
    • H01L21/02367—Substrates
    • H01L21/0237—Materials
    • H01L21/02422—Non-crystalline insulating materials, e.g. glass, polymers
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02—Manufacture or treatment of semiconductor devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02104—Forming layers
    • H01L21/02365—Forming inorganic semiconducting materials on a substrate
    • H01L21/02367—Substrates
    • H01L21/0237—Materials
    • H01L21/02425—Conductive materials, e.g. metallic silicides
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02—Manufacture or treatment of semiconductor devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02104—Forming layers
    • H01L21/02365—Forming inorganic semiconducting materials on a substrate
    • H01L21/02518—Deposited layers
    • H01L21/02521—Materials
    • H01L21/02524—Group 14 semiconducting materials
    • H01L21/02532—Silicon, silicon germanium, germanium
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02—Manufacture or treatment of semiconductor devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/02104—Forming layers
    • H01L21/02365—Forming inorganic semiconducting materials on a substrate
    • H01L21/02612—Formation types
    • H01L21/02617—Deposition types
    • H01L21/0262—Reduction or decomposition of gaseous compounds, e.g. CVD

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Condensed Matter Physics & Semiconductors (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
  • Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
  • Power Engineering (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Materials Engineering (AREA)
  • Chemical Vapour Deposition (AREA)

Abstract

A film of hydrogenated amorphous silicon is made by thermally decomposing a monosilane at elevated temperature in the presence of a substrate and depositing a layer of amorphous silicon which contains hydrogen on the substrate.

Description

SPECIFICATION Preparation of amorphous silicon semiconductors This invention relates to a method forthe preparation of a semiconductor material based on amorphous silicon which additionally contains hydrogen, hereinafter referred to as a -Si:H.
Such materials are known and are generally prepared by decomposing silane, in the presence or absence of a suitable doping agent as desired, in a vacuum chamber at elevated temperature by means of a glow discharge onto a suitable substrate.
However, a glow discharge provides a severe environment for the decomposition of silane. In particular, the effect temperature of the gas phase is extremely high.
A less severe environment is provided by the technique known as CVD (Chemical Vapour Deposition) in which a vapour is thermally decomposed in a closed system at elevated temperature and reduced pressure in the absence of a catalyst or other stimulant. This has the disadvantage, however, that the resulting films of amorphous silicon have low levels of hydrogen. In order to render such films semiconducting it may be necessary subsequently to treat them with hydrogen.
By operating at lower temperatures it is possible to produce films of amorphous silicon in which sufficient hydrogen is retained but the reaction rate is impractically slow.
We have now discovered that by increasing the pressure it is possible to adapt CVD to provide semiconducting films of a-Si-H which do not require subsequent treatment with hydrogen.
Thus according to the present invention there is provided a method for preparing a film of a-Si:H which method comprises the steps of thermally decomposing a monosilane at elevated temperature in the presence of a substrate and depositing a layer containing a-Si:H on the substrate.
Suitable substrates include metals and glass.
Preferably the pressure is above 400 Torr. Pressures up to and above atmospheric pressure are contemplated. Preferred temperatures are in the range 350#to 450 C.
Preferably the material is allowed to cool rapidly after silicon deposition to reduce the tendency of hydrogen incorporated in the film to diffuse out.
The resulting semiconductor material is suitable for use in the manufacture of photovoltaic components of solar cells.
If desired, layered structures incorporating layers of different electronic structures can be built up by adding traces of conventional doping agents to the silane. For example, a p-type layer can be deposited by adding diborane and an n-type layer by adding phosphine. Structures involving heterojunctions may also be prepared by adding methane.
Such structures are described more fully in our copending British patent applications Nos 8214204 and 8233764 respectively. They are suitable for conditioning to memory devices.
The invention is illustrated with reference to the following examples.
Examples In each example, glass (for dark conductivity measurements) and single crystal silicon (for Fourier Transform Infra Red measurements (FTIR) were introduced into a clean reaction chamber. The chamber was preheated to the required temperature and monosilane admitted. Reaction conditions for CVD are set out in the following Table.
Silane Time Example Temp ( C) Pressure p (Torr) (mins) (Torr) 1 415 690 318 35 2 2 385 650 138 230 3 415 580 187 46 4 415 630 120 20 The pressure increase is due to the liberation of hydrogen.
The reactions in Examples 2,3 and 4 were not allowed to proceed to completion in an effort to retain a significant proportion of hydrogen in the films.
There was little variation in dark conductivity, the samples having a room temperature conductivity (sigma RT) of the order of 5 x 10-1 ohm -'cm- with an activation energy of 0.6 - 0.7 eV.
FTIR measurements showed evidence of bonded hydrogen in the form of SiH2 and SiH species. Little oxygen incorporated into the film was apparent.

Claims (5)

1. A process for the preparation of a film of a-Si:H which comprises the steps of thermally decomposing a a monosilane at elevated temperature in the presence of a substrate and depositing a layer containing a-Si:H on the substrate.
2. The process according to claim 1 wherein the pressure is above 400 Torr.
3. The process according to claims 1 or 2 wherein the pressure is not more than 1 atmosphere.
4. The# process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the elevated temperature is a temperature in the range 350 -450 C.
5. The process according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the a -Si:H is allowed to cool rapidly after it has been deposited.
GB8613076A 1985-05-31 1986-05-29 Preparation of amorphous silicon semiconductors Withdrawn GB2176054A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB8513733A GB8513733D0 (en) 1985-05-31 1985-05-31 Amorphorous silicon semiconductors

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB8613076D0 GB8613076D0 (en) 1986-07-02
GB2176054A true GB2176054A (en) 1986-12-10

Family

ID=10579953

Family Applications (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB8513733A Pending GB8513733D0 (en) 1985-05-31 1985-05-31 Amorphorous silicon semiconductors
GB8613076A Withdrawn GB2176054A (en) 1985-05-31 1986-05-29 Preparation of amorphous silicon semiconductors

Family Applications Before (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GB8513733A Pending GB8513733D0 (en) 1985-05-31 1985-05-31 Amorphorous silicon semiconductors

Country Status (1)

Country Link
GB (2) GB8513733D0 (en)

Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2100759A (en) * 1977-12-22 1983-01-06 Canon Kk Electrophotographic photosensitive member and process for production thereof

Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2100759A (en) * 1977-12-22 1983-01-06 Canon Kk Electrophotographic photosensitive member and process for production thereof

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB8613076D0 (en) 1986-07-02
GB8513733D0 (en) 1985-07-03

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US4237150A (en) Method of producing hydrogenated amorphous silicon film
EP0179138B1 (en) A method of forming a composite semiconductor structure
US4501769A (en) Method for selective deposition of layer structures consisting of silicides of HMP metals on silicon substrates and products so-formed
JP2000031066A (en) Method for forming silicon film and manufacture of solar battery
Ohshita Reactants in SiC chemical vapor deposition using CH3SiH3 as a source gas
EP0488112B1 (en) Method of forming thin film of amorphous silicon by plasma CVD
US4478654A (en) Amorphous silicon carbide method
GB2176054A (en) Preparation of amorphous silicon semiconductors
US4762808A (en) Method of forming semiconducting amorphous silicon films from the thermal decomposition of fluorohydridodisilanes
Kubler et al. Low temperature NH3 adsorption on clean amorphous silicon and on crystalline silicon surfaces and nitrogen bonding in hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitride films: A comparative X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study
GB2192644A (en) Transparent conductive film and the production thereof
CA1335950C (en) Method of forming semiconducting amorphous silicon films from the thermal decomposition of dihalosilanes
Lucovsky et al. Low-temperature deposition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si: H): Control of polyhydride incorporation and its effects on thin film properties
US5882805A (en) Chemical vapor deposition of II/VI semiconductor material using triisopropylindium as a dopant
JPH07221026A (en) Method for forming quality semiconductor thin film
Morosanu et al. Mechanism of the chemical vapour deposition of Si3N4 films from SiH2Cl2 and NH3 under diffusion-controlled conditions
JPH0817738A (en) Formation method for crystalline semiconductor thin film
Meyer et al. The deposition of Si Ge strained layers from GeH4, SiH2Cl2, SiH4 and Si2H6
JP2639616B2 (en) Semiconductor film formation method
JPH079059B2 (en) Method for producing carbon thin film
US3821020A (en) Method of deposition of silicon by using pyrolysis of silane
Ohshita et al. Reaction of Si2H2 molecule on a silicon surface
JPH0212812A (en) Suppressing method for optical deterioration of amorphous silicon carbide film
JP2659400B2 (en) Formation method of carbon-containing silicon thin film
US5026575A (en) Growth of polycrystalline CaF2 via low temperature OMCVD

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
WAP Application withdrawn, taken to be withdrawn or refused ** after publication under section 16(1)