Deposition rate in modulated radio-frequency silane plasmas

Plasma-enhanced chemical-vapor deposition of amorphous silicon by a square-wave amplitude-modulated radio-frequency excitation has been studied by optical emission spectroscopy and plasma modeling. By the modulation, the deposition rate is increased or reduced, depending on the plasma parameters. The increase in the deposition rate in powder-free (alpha-regime) plasmas is explained by the behavior of the electrons. High-energy electrons cause a large production of radicals at the onset of the plasma, as evidenced by an overshoot in optical emission. This is confirmed by a one-dimensional fluid model. An optimum in the deposition rate at a modulation frequency of about 100 kHz is determined by the decay time of the electron density. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(00)02515-8].