Electrical and microstructural properties of highly boron-implantation doped 6H-SiC

Boron was implanted with four energies and doses at 400 degreesC into 6H-Si C epilayers to form a 500 nm thick doped layer with a mean concentration be tween 1x10(18) and 1.5x10(21) cm(-3). Two annealing techniques were used: f urnace and flash lamp annealing. The electrical and microstructural effects were investigated using temperature dependent Hall measurements, cross sec tional electron microscopy, and secondary ion mass spectrometry. During the annealing two competing processes occurred: boron outdiffusion and growth of boron containing precipitates. The efficiency of these individual proces ses is different for varying dopant concentrations as well as annealing tec hniques. After furnace annealing at temperatures between 1550 and 1750 degr eesC and for a mean boron concentration of 5x10(19) cm(-3) boron containing clusters are found mainly around the region of the three deeper implantati on peaks. In the surface region boron outdiffusion is observed adjusting a concentration of 1.5x10(19) cm(-3). Using flash lamp annealing, the outdiff usion is negligible. For high dopant concentrations (1.5x10(21) cm(-3)) the growth of random distributed boron precipitates is the dominating effect i ndependent of the used annealing techniques. The electrical activation is l imited due to the solubility of boron in SiC. After furnace annealing Hall effect measurements show a maximum hole concentration of about 2x10(16) cm( -3) for the boron concentration of about 5x10(18) cm(-3). Alternative to th e furnace annealing, the electrical properties after flash lamp annealing a t about 2000 degreesC, 20 ms show a slight enhancement of the maximum hole concentration for boron concentrations < 3x10(20) cm(-3). (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.