Measurement of laser annealed SiCGe by nuclear microprobe analysis

Incorporation of C into SiGe offers a way of improving the lattice match and reducing strain in epitaxial layers on Si substrates. A novel method for the synthesis of SiCGe films involves the deposition of SiGe films on Si single crystal substrates, C ion implantation of the SiGe film, followed by millimetre-sized laser-spot annealing of the film to promote epitaxial regrowth. We have used a nuclear microprobe to obtain channeling contrast images of the annealed regions of films with a composition of Si1-x-yGexCy (x similar to 8% and y similar to 1%). We find that the chi(min) of the annealed film is a strong function of laser fluence between 400 and 600 mJ/cm(2) (the onset of melting). Also, the regrowth within a 1 x 2 mm(2) laser spot is non-uniform with variations in crystal quality of up to 20%. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.