Hydrogen in RF Reactive Magnetron Sputtered Silicon Nitride Films

Abstract

ABSTRACTABSTRACT: Silicon nitride films (a-SixN1−x:H) have been prepared by rf reactive magnetron sputtering from a silicon target in a mixture gas of Ar, N2, and H2. The effects of the presence of hydrogen gas have been related to the refractive index, deposition rate, etch rate, and the Si-H and N-H bonding in the films. Hydrogen contents were measured by a quadrupole secondary ion mass spectrometer (SIMS) using deuterium implanted samples as reference standards. The deuterium implanted samples were annealed at 900°C for various periods of time to study the diffusion behavior of deuterium and hydrogen in a Si-rich and a nearly stoichiometric silicon nitride film.