CRYSTALLIZATION BEHAVIOR OF AMORPHOUS SIC FILMS PREPARED BY RF-SPUTTERING

The crystallization behavior of amorphous SiC (a-SiC) films prepared by rf diode sputtering was studied using IR measurements and transmission electron microscopy. The absorption band at around 800 cm** minus **1 in the IR spectrum became sharper and more intense when a sample was annealed above 1000 degree C, corresponding to the phase transition in the film from amorphous to polycrystalline beta -SiC. From cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy observations, crystallization occurred homogeneously in the film. The crystallization behavior was independent of the film thickness and the substrate temperature during preparation. The measured overall activation energy of crystallization of a-SiC films is about 5. 0 ev.