SiO2 formation in oxygen-implanted silicon

In this work high-resolution X-ray diffraction and high-resolution scanning electron microscopy were applied to the structural and microstructural characterization of early stages of SiO2 formation after oxygen implantation in Si, with the focus on the point defect recombination and aggregation processes. Depth-dependent profiles of implantation-induced lattice swelling were extracted from diffraction spectra. Heat-treatments between 500 degrees C and 900 degrees C led to a gradual lattice recovery of the Debye relaxation type with an activation energy of E = 0.5 eV. Strain relaxation is accompanied by the formation of SiO2 precipitates, which give rise to the Lorentzian-shaped X-ray diffuse scattering. Precipitate growth is diffusion-controlled and is characterized by an activation energy of Q = 1.6 eV. These findings shed some light on atomic processes involved in the oxidation of the Si interior. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.