Phase separated AlSi thin films prepared by filtered cathodic arc deposition

Saito, Tatsuya; Horie, R.; Den, Tohru; Bendavid, Avi; Preston, E.W.; Martin, Philip

doi:10.1016/j.tsf.2008.09.046

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…EDS measurements (figure 1(d)) confirm a close to uniform distribution of Al over the film thickness, as well as the 50:50 ratio between Si and Al in the film stoichiometry. These observations are consistent with those reported previously [18,20] and demonstrate reproducibility and robustness of the growth method.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 93%

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Monitoring selective etching of self-assembled nanostructured a-Si:Al films

et al. 2019

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Nanoporous and nanowire structures based on silicon (Si) have a well recognized potential in a number of applications such as photovoltaics, energy storage and thermoelectricity. The immiscibility of Si and aluminum (Al) may be utilized to produce a thin film of vertically aligned Al nanowires of 5 nm diameter within an amorphous silicon matrix (a-Si), providing a cheap and scalable fabrication method for sub 5 nm size Si nanostructures. In this work we study functionalization of these structures by removal of the Al nanowires. The nanowires have been etched by an aqueous solution of HCl, which results in a structure of vertically aligned nanochannels in a-Si with admixture of SiO x . The removal of Al nanowires has been monitored by several electron microscopy techniques, x-ray diffraction, Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, and optical reflectance. We have established that optical reflectance measurements can reliably identify the complete removal of Al, confirmed by other techniques. This provides a robust and relatively simple method for controlling the nano-fabrication process on a macroscopic scale.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 93%

“…The Al wires grow perpendicularly to the substrate surface and stretch over the film thickness. Previous reports have demonstrated the fabrication of such structures by magnetron sputtering and filtered cathodic vacuum arc deposition [18,20]. 3 Author to whom any correspondence should be addressed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Monitoring selective etching of self-assembled nanostructured a-Si:Al films

et al. 2019

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“…The porous a-Si material can be formed through anodization of a-Si [15,16], which generally yields a branched arrangement of random size pores. On the other hand, much finer and denser porosity on a nanoscale can be realized in co-sputtered a-Si:Al material system via a two-step process that involves Al and Si phase separation and subsequent selective etching of Al [17,18,19]. This method exploits the fact that at certain growth conditions the low solid-solubility of Al in Si leads to the self-assembled formation of Al NWs, yielding a densely packed network of vertically aligned NWs (with typical diameter and separation pitch of ~5 nm) embedded in the a-Si matrix.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surface Effects and Optical Properties of Self-Assembled Nanostructured a-Si:Al

et al. 2019

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We present a study of the surface effects and optical properties of the self-assembled nanostructures comprised of vertically aligned 5 nm-diameter Al nanowires embedded in an amorphous Si matrix (a-Si:Al). The controlled (partial) removal of Al nanowires in a selective etching process yielded nanoporous a-Si media with a variable effective surface area. Different spectroscopy techniques, such as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-Vis spectrophotometry and photoluminescence (PL), have been combined to investigate the impact of such nanostructuring on optical absorption and emission properties. We also examine long-term exposure to air ambient and show that increasing level of surface oxidation determines the oxide defect-related nature of the dominant PL emission from the nanoporous structures. The role of bulk, nanosize and surface effects in optical properties has been separated and quantified, providing a better understanding of the potential of such nanoporous a-Si:Al structures for future device developments.

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“…There are several techniques for the deposition of thin films: evaporation [4], chemical vapor deposition (CVD) [5], pulsed laser deposition (PLD) [6][7][8], sol-gel [9], spray pyrolysis [10][11][12], sputtering [13][14][15], and filtered cathodic arc deposition (FCAD) [16][17][18][19][20][21], among others. The main advantages of the FCAD process are: high deposition rate and control of ion energies, which allow for higher adhesion of the film to the substrate, good density, low processing temperature of the substrate, and good compatibility in hybrid processes; these advantages permit a selective deposition of ions [22].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%