Influence of interface structure on oxidation rate of silicon

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies on the changes in SiO2/Si(111) int erface structures and oxidation rates of Si(lll) with the progress of oxida tion were performed for oxide films formed using atomic oxygen at 400 degre esC. The following results are obtained for the same oxidation condition: 1 ) an atomically uniform oxidation reaction occurs at the SiO2/Si interface, 2) the oxidation rate changes periodically with the progress of oxidation and decreases significantly at specific interface structures. Therefore, it is revealed that the oxidation rate of Si is influenced by the SiO2/Si int erface structure.