STUDY OF INTERFACIAL REACTIONS IN METAL-SILICON AND RELATED SYSTEMS BY HIGH-RESOLUTION ELECTRON-MICROSCOPY AND THERMODYNAMIC ANALYSIS

This article discusses means for investigating and understanding the stability or reactivity at interfaces important in semiconductor processing. It is shown that high-resolution electron microscopy is capable of, and indeed essential to, phase identification at the nano-scale level. The interpretation of interfacial stability can be based on a phase diagram approach. However, as the number of elements involved at a single interface increases, then higher order phase diagrams are required. A method for deriving such diagrams is described and examples to illustrate their application are given. Emphasis in this paper is placed on metal-silicon based systems particularly Ti-Si, Ti-Si-O, Ti-Si-N and Ti-Si-O-N, and related silicide-forming elements. © 1990, The Japan Institute of Metals. All rights reserved.