Fabrication of Amorphous Silicon-Carbon Hybrid Films Using Single-Source Precursors

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Thin Film Technology
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Amorphous silicon-carbon (a-SiC) hybrid thin films are crucial for various electronic and optical applications.
• Developing cost-effective and tunable methods for a-SiC film deposition remains an active area of research.
• Single-source precursors offer a pathway to precisely control film composition and properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize amorphous silicon-carbon hybrid thin-layer materials using the liquid phase deposition (LPD) process.
• To investigate the efficacy of novel single-source precursors for LPD-based a-SiC film fabrication.
• To explore the tunability of carbon content and bandgap in the deposited a-SiC films.

Main Methods:

• Utilized four novel single-source precursors: methylisotetrasilane, trimethylsilylisotetrasilane, phenylisotetrasilane, and cyclohexasilane.
• Oligomerized precursors using UV light (λ = 365 nm) with neopentasilane oligomer (NPO) as a catalyst.
• Deposited thin films via spin coating, optimizing solution and process conditions.
• Characterized films using UV/vis spectroscopy, light microscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometry, XPS, SEM, and SEM/EDX.

Main Results:

• Successfully prepared amorphous silicon-carbon thin-layer materials via LPD.
• Demonstrated successful oligomerization of the novel precursors.
• Confirmed that carbon content and bandgap of the a-SiC films are tunable by selecting different single-source precursors.
• Comprehensive material characterization provided insights into film properties.

Conclusions:

• The LPD process using novel single-source precursors is an effective method for producing tunable amorphous silicon-carbon thin films.
• The choice of precursor significantly influences the carbon content and bandgap of the resulting films.
• This approach offers a versatile route for tailoring a-SiC materials for specific applications.