Characterization of amorphous carbon rich Si1-xCx thin films obtained using high energy hydrocarbon ion beams on Si

Amorphous Si1-xCx films, with a ranging from 0.54 to 0.71 and low hydrogen content (less than 5%) were grown by high-energy hydrocarbon ion beam deposition on silicon wafers. The resulting films were studied using XPS, AES, EELS and Raman spectroscopies. As x increases there is a higher number of C atoms in sp(2) sites, showing that for high carbon concentrations the bonding character of the C atoms is a function of the Si/C relative content in the films. Films annealed at different temperatures were studied by Raman and XPS spectroscopies; there is no evidence of a complete graphitization up to 900 degrees C. It is concluded that the presence of Si in the films increases their thermal stability. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.