Strain-induced morphological evolution and preferential interdiffusion in SiGe epitaxial film on Si(100) during high-temperature annealing

Strain relaxation in initially flat SiGe film on Si(1 0 0) during rapid the rmal annealing is studied. The surface roughens after high-temperature anne aling, which has been attributed to the intrinsic strain in the epilayers. It is interesting to find that high-temperature annealing also results in r oughened interface, indicating the occurrence of preferential interdiffusio n. It is suggested that the roughening at the surface makes the intrinsic s train in the epilayer as well as the substrate unequally distributed, causi ng preferential interdiffusion at the SiGe/Si interface during high-tempera ture annealing. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.