Mechanism of the chemical erosion of SiC under hydrogen irradiation

The erosion yield of SiC due to D bombardment has been determined by the weight-loss method as a function of temperature and energy in the range of 20-300 eV up to 1100 K. A temperature dependence exists clearly below 100 eV. For 20 eV D, the yield is 0.5% at 300 K and 1.5% in the maximum at 500 K. Contrary to Si erosion, no formation of silane was observed with mass spectrometry. Hydrocarbons, predominantly CD4 molecules, are only found at 20 eV. From the erosion of a thin SiC layer investigated using MeV ion beam analysis, segregation and preferential erosion of carbon are ruled out, because the layer thickness decreases while the composition stays constant. As no volatile silane production is detected, it is assumed that sputtering of Si or silane precursors with low binding energy occurs at low ion energies. The mechanism of the chemical erosion of Si in presence of C and absence of C is different. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.