Epitaxial Si(001) grown at 80-750 degrees C by ion-beam sputter deposition: Crystal growth, doping, and electronic properties

Epitaxial undoped and Sb-doped Si films have been grown on Si(001) substrates at temperatures T-s between 80 and 750 degrees C by ultrahigh-vacuum Kr+-ion-beam sputter deposition (IBSD). Critical epitaxial thicknesses t(e) in undoped films were found to range from 8 nm at T-s = 80 degrees C to >1.2 mu m at T-s greater than or equal to 300 degrees C, while Sb incorporation probabilities sigma(Sb) varied from unity at T-s less than or similar to 550 degrees C to similar or equal to 0.1 at 750 degrees C. These t(e) and sigma(Sb) values are approximately one and one to three orders of magnitude, respectively, higher than reported results achieved with molecular-beam epitaxy. Temperature-dependent transport measurements carried out on 1-mu m-thick Sb-doped IBSD layers grown at T-s greater than or equal to 350 degrees C showed that Sb was incorporated into substitutional sites with complete electrical activity and that electron mobilities in films grown at T-s greater than or equal to 400 degrees C were equal to the best reported results for bulk Si. (C) 1996 American Institute of Physics.