Interface structures of Al0.85Sc0.15N-on-Si thin films grown by reactive magnetron sputtering upon post-growth cyclic rapid thermal annealing

Abstract

Al0.85Sc0.15N thin films, about 920 nm thick, have been deposited on the Si (001) substrate by reactive magnetron sputtering at 600 °C. X-ray diffraction and pole-figure measurements revealed [0002]-oriented texture structures of the nitride films without any phase separations before and after cyclic annealing at 600–900 °C for up to 48 min. Cross-sectional studies by transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray analysis revealed an intermediate Al0.85Sc0.15N layer of ∼24.6 nm thick with smaller grains and tilted [0002]-orientations compared to its overlayer, i.e., a nucleation layer (NL), on the Si substrate. After annealing, apparent morphological changes have been observed at the near-interface regions, including the NL, the NL/Si interface, and the Si substrate, rather than in the Al0.85Sc0.15N overlay. Undesired oxygen has been observed in the nitride film and its composition increased during post-growth thermal annealing without forming oxides. These observations shed new light on crystal growth and post-growth thermal annealing of AlScN toward their high-performance piezoelectric applications.