Three dimensional modeling of silicon deposition process scale-up employing supersonic jets. II

A new technique to deposit silicon thin film employing supersonic beams is examined. Our previous studies involved both experimental and numerical approaches, in which the thin films were deposited at a high growth rate but over relatively small areas. The current studies are focused on the process scale-up by using multiple supersonic jets. Three dimensional simulations are conducted to investigate the geometrical effects of the molecular beam sources; One source configuration involving four jets is found to successfully deposit uniform silicon Alms over an area of 18 cm in diameter, with a growth rate higher than 200 Angstrom/min. The molecular beam energy obtained under these conditions is approximately 1.3 eV. A configuration is also designed to increase the deposition area in a laboratory facility for experimental verification. (C) 1999 American Vacuum Society. [S0734-2101(99)00303-6].