The Larger Grain and (111)-Orientation Planes of Poly-Ge Thin Film Grown on SiO<sub>2</sub> Substrate by Al-Induced Crystallization

Abstract

Al-induced crystallization yields the larger grain and (111)-orientation planes of poly-Ge thin film grown on SiO 2 substrate, the (111)-orientation planes of poly-Ge thin film grown on SiO 2 substrate are very important for the superior performance electronics and solar cells. We discussed the 50 nm thickness poly-Ge thin film grown on SiO 2 substrate by Al-induced crystallization focusing on the lower annealing temperature and the diffusion control interlayer between Ge and Al thin film. The (111)-orientation planes ratio of poly-Ge thin film achieve as high as 90% by merging the lower annealing temperature (325˚C) and the GeO x diffusion control interlayer. Moreover, we find the lack of defects on poly-Ge thin film surface and the larger average grains size of poly-Ge thin film over 12 μm were demonstrated by electron backscatter diffraction measurement. Our results turn on the feasibility of fabricating electronic and optical device with poly-Ge thin film grown on SiO 2 substrate.