Application of high-resolution x-ray diffraction for detecting defects in SiGe(C) materials

Abstract

The application of high-resolution x-ray diffraction for detecting and distinguishing defects in SiGe(C) layers is presented. A depth profile of the defects in SiGe/Si multilayers has been performed by using high-resolution reciprocal lattice mapping at different asymmetric reflections. Transmission electron microscopy was also applied in order to observe defects in the layers and these results were linked with the x-ray analysis. The substitutional C or B concentration in SiGe was measured by the shift of layer peak compared to the intrinsic layers. The thermal stability of the SiGe layers was investigated in order to rank the epitaxial quality of the SiGe below the detection limit of x-ray technique. It has also been demonstrated that x-ray analysis can be used for in-line process monitoring of layers grown in small device openings on patterned substrates. These types of analysis have also been used routinely for the evaluation of processed samples.

Optimization of Selective Growth of SiGe for Source/Drain in 14nm and Beyond Nodes FinFETs

“…The SiGe peak is aligned with Si along K// indicating minor strain relaxation. The mismatch parameters were obtained from this HRRLM and a parabolic relation was used to determine the lattice constant of SiGe layer and the Ge content [2,[11][12]. These calculations showed highly strained Si 0.60 Ge 0.40 layers in FinFETs.…”

“…The strain amount (or Ge content) in the processed FinFET structures was determined by high-resolution reciprocal lattice mapping (HRRLM) at (-115) reflection by using x-ray beam in a Synchrotron facility. The high intensity beam could provide the opportunity to measure the misfit parameters and therefore the strain relaxation for small SiGe crystals [11][12].…”

Near infrared image sensor with integrated germanium photodiodes.

“…The FWHM of the Ge(004) peak is a criterion to assess the the overall layer quality. 4,5 Nevertheless, as the values of the FWHM depend on the specific diffractometer setup used for the analysis 6 and also on sample specifications such as the layer thickness 7 or the use of x (gray, with offset on the intensity scale for clarity) scans for the epitaxial Ge-on-Si system. The inset shows the RSM on the Ge layer peak.…”

Substrate engineering for Ni-assisted growth of carbon nano-tubes

“…These layers were used as the substrates for CNT growth to study the strain effect. The Ge contents were obtained from simulation of the high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) ω-2Â rocking curves using the Takagi-Taupin equations [13,14]. In some of the layers the strain was partially relaxed.…”

“…4d, was annealed prior to the Ni deposition to obtain relaxed substrate. The strain relaxation in these samples was observed using HRXRD rocking curves [13,14]. Fig.…”