Electronic properties of low temperature microcrystalline silicon carbide prepared by Hot Wire CVD

New insight into the microstructure and doping of unintentionally n-type microcrystalline silicon carbide

“…The deposition of lc-SiC:H using hot wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD) 5 or plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) has been described by several research groups in the past. 6,7 They reported on the n-type characteristic of the films, although no doping gas was actively added to a gas mixture of monomethylsilane (MMS) and molecular hydrogen. Nevertheless, intentional n-doping of lc-SiC:H with nitrogen 8 or phosphine 6 and intentional p-doping of lcSiC:H by overcompensation with aluminum 9,10 or boron 11 are also possible.…”

“…5), while l only increases by less than 1 order of magnitude. In the literature, O and N impurities originating from contamination are discussed as possible candidates for the creation of donor-like states within the energy gap of lcSiC:H. 2,6,7 From c-SiC it is well known that N is a very good shallow donor impurity, due to its low ionization energy. 28 Unlike the case of unintentionally n-type doped microcrystalline silicon, where the use of gas purifiers during deposition decreased [O] and r d , 29 Finger et al 2 reported that the electrical properties of unintentionally n-type doped lcSiC:H were not affected by gas purifiers.…”

Microstructure of hydrogenated silicon carbide thin films prepared by chemical vapour deposition techniques

“…It is highly transparent for wavelengths in the visible light spectrum and still shows a reasonable conductivity [5,6]. However, if prepared from e.g.…”

“…However, if prepared from e.g. a mixture of Monomethylsilane (MMS) and hydrogen, large variations in the electronic properties are observed when deposition conditions are altered [5][6][7][8][9][10]. It is feasible to link these changes -similarly as in microcrystalline silicon -to a change of the microstructure of the material e.g.…”

Preparation of microcrystalline silicon solar cells on microcrystalline silicon carbide window layers grown with HWCVD at low temperature

“…Recently, hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD) process was developed for growing highly transparent and conductive hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon carbide (lc-SiC:H) films at low substrate temperatures (around 250°C) [1][2][3]. Based on this development, the application of lc-SiC:H in thin film silicon solar cells on cheap glass substrates was realized.…”