SILICIDE FORMATION AND THE GENERATION OF POINT-DEFECTS IN SILICON

The annealing behavior of the divacancy (V2) acceptor levels in silicon is investigated with the use of Schottky-barrier structures formed by the deposition of copper on n-type silicon irradiated with 2-MeV electrons. At temperatures below approximately 150-degrees-C an anomalously high annealing rate of the V2 centers is observed, and we believe that the fast-diffusing interstitial Cu+ passivates their electrical activity and forms neutral complexes. In the temperature range 150-200-degrees-C, where the metal-rich silicide-eta'-Cu3Si forms, the concentration of V2 remains almost constant, and we find no evidence for the injection of silicon self-interstitials during the formation of eta'-CU3Si, in contrast to recent experiments.