Recrystallization behavior of silicon implanted with iron

Abstract

The solid phase epitaxial growth (SPEG) of amorphized Si layers implanted with Fe (1 X 1015 cm-², 100 keV) was investigated in the temperature range from 500 to 550 °C using Rutherford backscattering spectrometry. The push-out of Fe atoms by the moving amorphous-crystalline (a-c) interface was observed during annealing, and enhancement of the recrystallization rate was induced by the presence of Fe. These results are discussed in terms of a model that assumes that Fe atoms are trapped in the amorphous layer and releasedw hen they are reached by the moving a-c interface during the SPEG process.