Structural Stability of Amorphous Semiconductor Superlattices

Abstract

AbstractWe report recent results of studies of the structure and thermal stability of periodic multilayers based on hydrogenated amorphous silicon, hydrogenated amorphous germanium, silicon nitride and silicon oxide. By varying the sublayer thickness from 1 nm to 20 nm it is possible to extract information on the range and magnitude of relaxation and interdiffusion in these metastable materials. It is also possible to gain information on the influence of interfaces on crystallization and relaxation. The principal techniques discussed here are Raman scattering, optical absorption and high resolution x-ray reflectivity.