Interdiffusion of Amorphous Si/Ge Multilayers Under Hydrostatic Pressure

Abstract

ABSTRACTWe report initial results of an x-ray diffraction study of the pressure-dependence of the interdiffusion rate in amorphous Si/Ge Multilayers. Anneals were performed in a diamond anvil cell at 700 K for various pressures and durations. Interdiffusion was measured by Monitoring the rate of decay of the artificial Bragg peaks associated with the multilayer periodicity. A consistent increase in diffusivity was seen with pressure, characterized by an activation volume of -25±11 percent of the atomic volume of Si. An atomistic mechanism that Might account for such behavior is discussed.