USXES investigations of thin film TiSi2

Thin films of TiSi2 (C54) silicide obtained through the interactions of Ti/Si(111) and Ti/poly-Si/Si(111) structures under thermal anneal (TA) and infrared anneal (IRA) in a vacuum were investigated by ultrasoft X-ray emission spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Silicon L-2,L-3-spectra of thin film silicides differ from those of bulk by the increased intensity in the high energy range adjoined to the Fermi level and general smoothing. This effect is mostly expressed for rapid IRA of thin film structures with the films of poly-Si and can be explained by increased deficiency of the crystal structure of silicides. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.