Jl. Rouviere et al., Huge differences between low- and high-angle twist grain boundaries: The case of ultrathin (001) Si films bonded to (001) Si wafers, APPL PHYS L, 77(8), 2000, pp. 1135-1137
Ultrathin (001) Si films bonded onto (001) Si wafers, inducing grain bounda
ries with twist angles varying from 0.5 degrees to 12 degrees, were studied
by transmission electron microscopy. A great structural difference between
low (psi < 5 degrees) and high (psi > 6 degrees) twist angles was observed
. In low twist angle grain boundaries, "twist interfacial dislocations" are
dissociated and produce rough interfaces with no oxide precipitates. It is
the opposite in high-angle grain boundaries: there is no dissociation, the
interfaces are smoother but contain oxide precipitates. These differences
are not attributed to the thin thickness of one grain, but to the large ato
mic differences between high- and low-angle twist grain boundaries, which i
s not the case for tilt grain boundaries. (C) 2000 American Institute of Ph
ysics. [S0003-6951(00)03834-1].