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The diffusion of indium atoms in silicon-dioxide films previously implanted with arsenic ions with different energies is studied in relation to the temperature of postimplantation annealing. It is established that the diffusion properties of indium depend on the presence of arsenic atoms in the film and their energy. An increase in the As content in the region of the average projective range of In+ ions prevents the diffusion of In towards the SiO2 film surface at high annealing temperatures and stimulates the diffusion of In deep into the film in the form of a monovalent interstitial site. The experimentally observed effects are interpreted on the assumption of the formation of In–As pairs in neighboring substitutional positions in the SiO2 matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By means of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, the distribution and interaction of In and As atoms implanted into thermally grown SiO2 films to concentrations of about 1.5 at % are studied in relation to the temperature of subsequent annealing in nitrogen vapors in the range of T = 800–1100°C. It is found that annealing at T = 800–900°C results in the segregation of As atoms at a depth corresponding to the As+-ion range and in the formation of As nanoclusters that serve as sinks for In atoms. An increase in the annealing temperature to 1100°C yields the segregation of In atoms at the surface of SiO2 with the simultaneous enhanced diffusion of As atoms. The corresponding diffusion coefficient is DAs = 3.2 × 10–14 cm2 s–1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ge/Si quantum dot (QD) structures doped with Mn have been tested by the EPR method to find the optimal conditions for formation of the diluted magnetic semiconductor (DMS) phase inside QDs. The effect of Mn doping has been studied for two series of samples: series A with QDs grown at 450°C and varied Mn concentration and series B with QDs grown at different temperature with Mn concentration x = 0.02. Several effects of modification of the EPR spectra due to Mn presence in the samples have been obtained. These effects are related to (i) strain reduction due to Ge—Si intermixing, (ii) QD enlargement and change in QD shape, (iii) presence of an additional magnetic field produced by Mn atoms incorporated in QDs. The data obtained allow us to understand the reasons for irreproducibility of the results available in the literature on the creation of magnetic Ge1 − xMnx quantum dots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using X-ray absorption near edge structure spectroscopy, extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, the features of the microstructure and elemental composition of Si/GeMn magnetic systems obtained by molecular beam epitaxy and containing quantum dots are studied. Intense mixing of Ge and Si atoms is found in all samples. The degree of mixing (diffusion) correlates with the conditions of synthesis of Si/GeMn samples. For these systems, direct contacts of germanium atoms with manganese atoms are characterized and the presence of interstitial manganese with tetrahedral coordination and substitution of manganese for germanium and silicon in the lattice sites is found. The presence of stoichiometric phases Ge8Mn11, Ge3Mn5 is not detected. The correlations of the Ge, Si, and Mn coordination numbers in the Ge environment are determined both with the Mn flux value (evaporator temperature) and with the temperature at which quantum dots are grown, as well as with other synthesis conditions. The manganese concentration in the samples is determined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The systematic features of the formation of Ge nanocrystals in SiO thin films implanted with Ge ions and then subjected to high-temperature annealing (1130°C) are studied in relation to hydrostatic pressure. It is established that annealing at atmospheric pressure is accompanied by the diffusion of Ge atoms from the implantation region to the Si substrate and does not induce the formation of Ge nanocrystals. An increase in pressure during annealing yields a deceleration in the diffusion of germanium into silicon and is accompanied by the formation of twinned lamellae at the Si/SiO interface (at pressures of ~10 bar) or by the nucleation and growth of Ge nanocrystals (at pressures of ~10 bar) in the SiO film. The results are discussed on the basis of the concept of a change in the activation volume of the formation and migration of point defects under conditions of compression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electronic transport properties of insulating Si:Ga films with superconducting, Ga-rich nanoprecipitates are investigated in dependence on temperature, current, and magnetic field. The large negative magnetoresistance, observed below the critical temperature can be explained by Cooper pair breaking and subsequent tunneling of the fermionic quasiparticles. Localization due to quantum interferences of bosons or fermions, as recently discussed, seems not to be the reason for the insulating state and the large magnetoresistance. Cooper pair tunneling is blocked by the high Coulomb barrier. The quasiparticles can overcome the barrier by inelastic cotunneling that results in nonlinear current-voltage characteristics and negative electroresistance. Since the experimental results obtained for the Si:Ga film resemble that of many other films with superconducting nanoprecipitates the conclusions drawn here could be quite general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ion-beam synthesis of InSb nanocrystals in the buried SiO layer of a silicon-on-insulator structure is investigated. The distributions of In and Sb atoms after annealing at a temperature of T = 500-1100°C are studied. It is established that the redistribution of implanted atoms is unsteadily dependent on the annealing temperature. The formation of InSb nanocrystals occurs at Ta ≥ 800°C near the Si/SiO interface and at a depth corresponding to the mean paths R. Analysis of the profiles of implanted atoms and of the structure and depth distribution of nanocrystals formed allows an inference regarding the two-stage character of formation of the InSb phase. In the initial stage, antimony precipitates are formed; further the precipitates serve as nuclei for indium and antimony to flow to them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crystallization of silicon-on-insulator films, implanted with high doses of hydrogen ions, upon annealing with millisecond pulses is studied. Immediately after hydrogen-ion implantation, the formation of a three-phase structure composed of silicon nanocrystals, amorphous silicon, and hydrogen bubbles is detected. It is shown that the nanocrystalline structure of the films is retained upon pulsed annealing at temperatures of up to ∼1000°C. As the temperature of the millisecond annealing is increased, the nanocrystal dimensions increase from 2 to 5 nm and the fraction of the nanocrystalline phase increases to ∼70%. From an analysis of the activation energy of crystal phase growth, it is inferred that the process of the crystallization of silicon films with a high (∼50 at %) hydrogen content is limited by atomic-hydrogen diffusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systematic features of endotaxial growth of intermediate germanium layers at the bonding interface in the silicon-on-insulator structure consisting of buried SiO2 layer implanted with Ge+ ions are studied in relation to the annealing temperature. On the basis of the results for high-resolution electron microscopy and thermodynamic analysis of the Si/Ge/SiO2 system it is assumed that the endotaxial growth of the Ge layer occurs via formation of a melt due to enhanced segregation and accumulation of Ge at the Si/SiO2 interface. Effect of germanium at the bonding interface on the Hall mobility of holes in silicon layers with nanometer-scale thickness is studied. It is found that the structures including the top silicon layer with the thickness 3–20 nm and incorporating germanium feature the hole mobility that exceeds by a factor of 2–3 the hole mobility in corresponding Ge-free silicon-on-insulator structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The properties of germanium implanted into the SiO2 layers in the vicinity of the bonding interface of silicon-on-insulator structures are studied. It is shown that, under conditions of high-temperature (1100°C) annealing, germanium nanocrystals are not formed, while the implanted Ge atoms segregate at the Si/SiO2 bonding interface. It is established that, in this case, Ge atoms are found at sites that are coherent with the lattice of the top silicon layer. In this situation, the main type of traps is the positive-charge traps; their effect is interpreted in the context of an increase in the surface-state density due to the formation of weaker Ge-O bonds. It is found that the slope of the drain-gate characteristics of the back MIS transistors increases; this increase is attributed to an increased mobility of holes due to the contribution of an intermediate germanium layer formed at the Si/SiO2 interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photoluminescence (PL) from CdS nanoclusters formed in the matrix of a Langmuir–Blodgett film and from the same clusters with the matrix removed has been studied. The PL spectrum of clusters in the matrix has the form of a broad band (full width at half-maximum (FWHM) ∼0.6 eV) peaked at 2.4 eV. After removing the matrix with hexane, the PL spectrum consists of a high-energy band at 2.9 eV (FWHM ∼0.2 eV) and two low-energy bands at 2.4 and 2.0 eV (FWHM ∼0.5 eV). The high-energy band is attributed to exciton recombination in the nanoclusters, and the bands at 2.4 and 2.0 eV, to recombination via levels related to defects in the bulk of the matrix and at the nanocluster–matrix interface, respectively. © 2003 MAIK “Nauka / Interperiodica”. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of hydrostatic compression on the implantation-induced synthesis of Ge nanocrystals in SiO[sub 2] host was studied. It is found that high-temperature annealing under pressure leads to retardation of Ge diffusion in SiO[sub 2]. It is shown that unstressed Ge nanocrystals are formed as a result of conventional annealing (under atmospheric pressure). Annealing under pressure is accompanied by formation of hydrostatically stressed Ge nanocrystals. The stress in Ge nanocrystals was determined from optical-phonon frequencies in the Raman spectra. The shift of Raman resonance energy (E[sub l], E[sub 1] + Δ[sub l]) corresponds to the quantization of the ground-state energy for a two-dimensional exciton at the critical point M[sub 1] of germanium. It is ascertained that a photoluminescence band peaked at 520 nm is observed only in the spectra of the films which contain stressed Ge nanocrystals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract. The lattice damage of silicon produced by ion implantation at extremely high current density of 0.8 A/cm[sup 2] (2.5 x 10[sup 18] cm[sup -2] s[sup -1]) was investigated. In a focused ion beam system, implantation was carried out with 70 kev Co ions, fluences of 1.2 x l0[sup 16]cm[sup -2] and 6.7 x 10[sup 15]cm[sup -2] into Si (111) at room temperature and elevated temperatures between 355 Celsius and 400 Celsius. Radiation damage measurements were performed by Rutherford backscattering/channeling spectroscopy and micro-Raman analysis. The radiation damage was studied as a function of pixel dwell-time and implantation temperature. The critical temperature for amorphization increases with current density. Although the fluence of the focused ion implantation was constant, crystalline layers were obtained for short and amorphous layers for long pixel dwell-times. The critical dwell-time of crystalline/amorphous transition increases with implantation temperature. From the results a typical time for deflect annealing of 10[sup-5] s at 400 Celsius and an activation energy of (2.5 +/- 0.6) eV were deduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photoluminescence (PL), Raman scattering, and the Rutherford backscattering of α-particles were used to study the formation of the centers of radiative-recombination emission in the visible region of the spectrum on annealing of the SiO[sub 2] layers implanted with Ge ions. It was found that the Ge-containing centers were formed in the as-implanted layers, whereas the stages of increase and decrease in the intensities of PL bands were observed following an increase in the annealing temperature to 800°C. The diffusion-related redistribution of Ge atoms was observed only when the annealing temperatures were as high as 1000°C and was accompanied by formation of Ge nanocrystals. However, this did not give rise to intense PL as distinct from the case of Si-enriched SiO[sub 2] layers subjected to the same treatment. It is assumed that, prior to the onset of Ge diffusion, the formation of PL centers occurs via completion of direct bonds between the neighboring excess atoms, which gives rise to the dominant violet PL band (similar to the PL of O vacancies in SiO[sub 2]) and a low-intensity long-wavelength emission from various Ge-containing complexes. The subsequent formation of centers of PL with λ[sub m] ∼ 570 nm as a result of anneals at temperatures below 800°C is explained by agglomeration of bonded Ge atoms with formation of compact nanocrystalline precipitates. The absence of intense PL following the high-temperature anneals is believed to be caused by irregularities in the interfaces between the formed Ge nanocrystals and the SiO[sub 2] matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of experimental and theoretical investigations has been initiated for 6H-SiC samples sequentially implanted with high doses of N[sup +](65 keV) + N[sup +](120 keV) + Al[sub +](100 keV) + Al[sub +](160 keV) ions at temperatures between 200 and 800°C. Nitrogen and carbon distribution profiles are measured by ERD and structural defect distributions are measured by Rutherford backscattering with channeling. A comparison between the experimental data and the results of computer simulation yields a physical model to describe the relaxation processes of the implanted SiC structure, where the entire implanted volume is divided into regions of different depth, having different guiding kinetics mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]