The Influence of Deposition Pressure on the Properties of Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Thin Films

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si : H) thin films on soda-lime glass substrates were deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) using disilane and hydrogen as source gases. To study the influence of deposition pressure on the deposition rate, optical band gap and structure factor, a surface profilometer, an ultraviolet-visible spectrometer, a Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer and a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to characterize the deposited thin films. It is found that the deposition rate firstly increased and then decreased and the optical band gap monotonically decreased with the increasing deposition pressure. Moreover, the formation of SiH bond was preferable to the formation of SH2 or SiH3 bond when the deposition pressure was less than 210 Pa, while it was opposite when the deposition pressure is higher than 210 Pa. Finally, the deposition pressure in the range of 110 similar to 210 Pa was found to be more suitable for the preparation of high quality a-Si : H thin films