Silicon microcolumn arrays grown by nanosecond pulsed-excimer laser irradiation

Arrays of high aspect ratio silicon microcolumns that protrude well above the initial surface have been formed by cumulative nanosecond pulsed-excimer laser irradiation of silicon. Microcolumn growth is strongly affected by the gas environment, being enhanced in air or other oxygen-containing ambient. It is proposed that microcolumn growth occurs through a combination of pulsed-laser melting of the tips of the columns and deposition of silicon from the intense flux of silicon-rich vapor produced by ablation of the surface regions between columns. The molten tips of the columns are strongly preferred sites for deposition, resulting in a very high axial growth rate. The growth process is conceptually similar to the vapor-liquid-solid method used to grow silicon whiskers. However, in the present case the pulsed-laser radiation fulfills two roles almost simultaneously, viz., providing the flux of silicon-containing molecules and melting the tips of the columns. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(99)04917-7].