AFM study of SINx : H surfaces treated by hydrogen plasma: modification ofmorphological and scaling characteristics

Exposing silicon nitride surfaces to hydrogen plasma prior to low temperatu re microcrystalline-si deposition is an effective way of modifying surfaces to improve wettability and surface cleanliness. Atomic force microscopy (A FM) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) showed a delicate change in the m orphology and a clear increase in nucleation resulting from the modificatio n and cleaning effect of the SiNx:H surface by H-2 plasma exposure. The sur face roughness correlation function measured by AFM has been shown to be in good agreement with a simple model from which the roughness exponent and l ateral sizes of mountains and valleys in the surface can be deduced. (C) 20 01 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.