The Self-assembled Deposition on the Surface of Mono-crystalline Silicon Induced by High-Current Pulsed Electron Beam

High-current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) technique was applied to irradiate the surface of mono-crystalline silicon wafers. Surface microstructures of the irradiated surface were investigated in detail by atomic force microscope (AFM), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The experimental results show that HCPEB irradiation with energy density 4 J/cm2caused evaporation of the irradiated surface. Subsequently, the evaporation Si-droplets was deposited to form Si-nanoparticles on the surface. Meanwhile, the structures of intensive plastic deformation were also introduced within the irradiated surface layer. The dislocation configurations with rectangular and approximate hexagonal network were formed on the surface of Si wafer after 5-pulsed irradiation. The periodic self-deposited structures appear to be related to the configuration of regular dislocations arrays, which were favorable locations for the deposited Si-nanoparticles.