Agglomeration of TiSi2 thin film on (100) Si substrates

Abstract

We have investigated the detailed process of agglomeration of TiSi2 thin film on (100) Si substrates as a model system for our recent geometrical model of agglomeration based on the spheroidization at both the surface and film/substrate interface. Agglomeration occurs by a nucleation of holes at grain-boundary vertices as a result of spheroidization at both interfaces and by their subsequent growth along grain boundaries in accordance with the prediction of our model. The critical condition of the ratio of the grain size to film thickness is predicted and confirmed to be between 5 and 6 depending on the magnitude of free-energy barrier.

Effects of prolonged annealing on NiSi at low temperature (500°C)

“…15, which is nicely consistent with our SEM micrograph ( Fig. 15, which is nicely consistent with our SEM micrograph ( Fig.…”

Critical thickness for the agglomeration of thin metal films

“…In order to interpret this behavior, we refer to a couple of papers by Rha and Park [16][17][18] which studied the agglomeration process of a metallic film deposited on an inert substrate. By minimizing the surface energy of such a system as a function of the film geometry, they demonstrated that the grooving mechanism can lead to the formation of an array of touching compact islands without the exposure of the substrate.…”

Agglomeration and Dendritic Growth of Cu/Ti/Si Thin Film

“…So, the agglomeration islands are formed and connected to each other, finally completely isolated. Film thickness significantly influences the progress of agglomeration [16][17][18]. Annealed after the same temperature, the film thickness becomes thinner, and agglomeration occurs easier.…”

“…In the past two decades, Cu/Ti thin film system due to its potential applications has been studied, such as the kinetics of solid-phase interactions [3,4], microstructure [5], metallurgical [6], the formation of interface layers [7,8], thermal oxidation [9], mechanical behavior [5,6,10], and electrical properties [11]. In some Cu film systems [12][13][14][15][16][17][18], remarkable agglomeration occurs at the interfaces on annealing. This morphology evolution make the device performance be degraded.…”