A comparative study of plasma enhanced chemically vapor deposited Si-O-H and Si-N-C-H films using the environmentally benign precursor diethylsilane

The environmentally benign precursor diethylsilane (DES) was used with either N2O or NH3 to synthesize Si-O-H or Si-N-C-H films by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The growth rates were observed to decrease with higher temperature while increasing with total pressure. Oxide films with optimal properties were synthesized at a deposition temperature of 300 degreesC, total pressure of 0.3 Torr, DES flow rate of 15 sccm, and N2O/DES flow rate ratio of 16. Comparative values of refractive index, stress, hardness and Young's modulus are presented as a function of processing variables and related to film density and resulting film compositions. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.