CRYSTALLIZATION OF ION-BEAM-SYNTHESIZED SIC LAYER BY THERMAL ANNEALING

Synthesis of beta-phase silicon carbide (SiC) layers has been achieved by high-dose carbon ion beam implantation into (100) silicon wafers w ith two different ion implantation energies, 40 keV and 65 keV. Subseq uent furnace annealing was carried out in N-2 at temperatures ranging from 600 to 1200 degrees C for 2 h. Rutherford backscattering spectrom etry (RBS) analysis revealed carbon distribution and the formation of an SiC layer. Infrared spectroscopy (IR) exhibited a sharp absorption peak produced by the Si-C bond at 795 cm(-1) with full width at half m aximum (FWHM) of about 35 cm(-1). A layer of crystalline SiC was forme d after annealing the as-implanted sample at 1000 degrees C for 2 h, T he influence of annealing temperature on the surface morphology and th e dynamics of the crystallization procedure was studied by atomic forc e microscopy (AFM). A study of grain size and roughness revealed that the morphology of the SiC layer was largely dependent on annealing tem perature, and the average grain size increased as the annealing temper ature was raised. At about 900 degrees C, a layer of nanocrystalline S iC was formed on the sample surface, containing columnar grains with a FWHM of tens of nanometers and a height of less than ten nanometers.