Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor

Deposition of thin films by sputtering method

Feri Adriyanto
PhD student
Microsystems and Nanotechnology Laboratory Department of Physics, University of Oslo

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Outline
Introduction Fundamental of sputtering

Techniques of sputtering
Sputtering zinc oxide thin film Summary

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Outline
Introduction Fundamental of sputtering

Techniques of sputtering
Sputtering zinc oxide thin film Summary

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Mechanism of sputtering ?
Interactions of ions with surfaces
The ion impact may set up a series of collisions between atoms of the target, possibly leading to the ejection of some of these atoms. This ejection process is known as sputtering.

The removal of surface atoms due to energetic particle bombardment

http://www.postech.ac.kr/mse/tfxs/2003_2/chapter3.pdf Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Sputter yield deposition

Sputtering
Ions are accelerated into target Some of the surface atoms are sputtered off of the target. Measure of efficiency of sputtering These sputtered atoms flow acrossS ejected atoms or molecules the chamber to incident ion where they are deposited

The sputter yield depends on: (a) the energy of the incident ions; (b) the masses of the ions and target atoms; (c) the binding energy of atoms in the solid and (d) the incident angle of ions.
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Sputtering Alloy Targets

Slow diffusion mixing in solids (sputtering) target reaches steady state surface composition balances sputter yield

Suiqiong Li, student presentation of ELEC 7730 Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Advantages & Disadvantages of sputter deposition

Advantages Elements, alloys and compounds can be sputtered and deposited. The sputtering target provides a stable, long-lived vaporization source. In some configurations, reactive deposition can be easily accomplished using reactive gaseous species that are activated in plasma. The source and substrate can be spaced close together. The sputter deposition chamber can have a small volume. Disadvantages Sputtering rates are low compared to those that can be attained in thermal evaporation. Sputtering targets are often expensive and material use may be poor. Most of the energy incident on the target becomes heat, which must be removed. In reactive sputter deposition, the gas composition must be carefully controlled to prevent positioning the sputtering target.

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Outline
Introduction Fundamental of sputtering

Techniques of sputtering
Sputtering zinc oxide thin film Summary

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

DC (diode) Sputtering
The simplest sputtering technology
Parameters for DC Sputtering Sputter voltage
typically -2 to -5 kV

Substrate Bias Voltage

substrate is being bombarded by electrons and ions from target and plasma sputtering film while you deposit neutral atoms deposit independently put negative bias on the substrate to control this can significantly change film properties

http://www.glue.umd.edu/ ~ddev/me489f/slides/2b_d eposition_x6.pdf

Deposition rate
changes with Ar pressure increases with sputter yield usually increases with high voltage

E (e-) < 2eV - no ionization, elastic collisions only E (e-) > 2eV - inelastic collisions add energy to Ar ionization (highest energy process, ~15eV) Note: mass (e-)/mass( Ar) ~ 10-5 energy transfer small e- gain energy via elastic collisions until E>15eV for ionization

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Fundamentals of plasma sputtering DC sputtering (diode sputtering)

Pressure ~10 Pa noble gas (e.g. Ar) Voltage ~1.5 kV Electron emission Sputtering Implantation

Disadvantages: Cathode
Low ion current density (low sputtering rate)
Ionisation coeffcient
10

0.1 0.01 10

100

1000

Electron energy [eV]

Defects generation
Anode + substrate
Tomasz Suszko, International Student Summer School Nanotechnologies in materials engineering Warsaw - Koszalin 2006

High working gas pressure resulting in scattering (low deposition rate) Dielectric materials can not be sputtered

High voltage is needed

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Fundamentals of plasma sputtering (magnetron sputtering & unbalanced magnetron sputtering)

G.J. Mankey, Lecture 9, Univ of Alabama

Ionisation coeffcient
10

+ Low working gas pressure 0.1 Pa + Very high ion current density is possible (high sputtering rate)
100 1000

0.1 0.01 10

Electron energy [eV]

Substrate

DC or pulsed power supply

There is a possibility to control the substrate ion current and the energy of the ions as well

Tomasz Suszko, International Student Summer School Nanotechnologies in materials engineering Warsaw - Koszalin 2006

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Advantages & Disadvantages of Magnetron Sputtering

Advantages

High deposition rate Reducing electron bombardment of substrate Extending the operating vacuum range ability to operate at lower pressures
The most widely commercially practiced sputtering method

Disadvantages

An erosion track in the target his leads to poor efficiency of sputtering yield versus target volume compared to non-magnetron sputtering Non-uniform removal of particles from target result in non-uniform films on substrate
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Reactive Sputtering

Sputtering metallic target in the presence of a reactive gas mixed with inert gas (Ar)
A mixture of inert +reactive gases used for sputtering

oxides Al2O3, SiO2, Ta2O5 (O2) nitrides TaN, TiN, Si3N4 (N2, NH3) carbides TiC, WC, SiC (CH4, C2H4, C3H8)
chemical reaction takes place on substrate and target can poison target if chemical reactions are faster than sputter rate adjust reactive gas flow to get good stoichiometry without incorporating excess gas into film
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Fundamentals of plasma sputtering reactive sputtering

Compounds of the target and gas elements

Inert gas (e.g. Ar) Reactive gas (N2, O2, CH4 etc.)

For poorly conducting or insulator deposits pulsed power supply is very usefull Gas pressure Gas flows Discharge power (Substrate bias energy of the ions) (Substrate ion current density)

Control unit
Optical signal (optical emission spectroscopy)

Pumping system Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

RF Sputtering DC sputtering - what about dielectrics?

in DC systems, positive charge builds up on the cathode (target) need 1012 volts to sputter insulators !!
avoid charge build up by alternating potential
Water Cooled Target Dark Space Plasma Sputtering 13.5 MHz RF Power Supply (with matching network) Magnet Magnet Cathode Gas In

RF sputtering

Shield

Ad-atom

frequencies less than about 50 kHz electrons and ions in plasma are mobile both follow the switching of the anode and cathode basically DC sputtering of both surfaces frequencies above about 50 kHz ions (heavy) can no longer follow the switching enough electrons to ionize gases(5~30MHz) Typically 13.56 MHz is used

Film growth Substrate

Base plate

Anode

Hi Vac Pump

Rotary Pump

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Ground

Advantages of RF Sputtering

It works well with insulating targets High efficiency

easier to keep plasma going can operate at lower Ar pressures (1-15 mTorr) fewer gas collisions more line of sight deposition

http://aultimut.com/aultimut/details.asp?itemid=11 Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Outline
Introduction Fundamental of sputtering

Techniques of sputtering
Sputtering zinc oxide thin film Summary

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Al-doped ZnO thin films for TCO applications

Sample Prepared: The ZnO thin films were deposited onto glass and n-Si (100) substrate with Tri-Axis Semicore r.f. sputtering machine using 5% Al-doped ZnO target. Experimental conditions: chamber Substrate temperature: 4000 C. Ar flow-rate: 30 sccm, 50 sccm, 60 sccm, 70 sccm and 80 sccm. r.f. power: 50 W and 200 W. monitor Characterizations of sputtered sample: Thickness of the sputtered films: spectroscopic ellipsometry and dektak profilometry. target Transmittance: UV-VIS-NIR spectroscopy. Crystal orientation: X-rays diffractometer. Surface morphology : AFM substrate Resistivity: Hall measurement. Mobility : Hall measurement. Tri-Axis Semicore r.f. sputtering
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

X-rays diffraction spectra of sputtered Aldoped ZnO thin films

AFM Dimension 3100 at SMN UiO

A strong X-ray peak from (002) and (004) planes is dominant, suggesting that most grains have c-axis perpendicular to the substrate surface. The (002)-ZnO and (004)ZnO peaks were measured at 2 = 34.120, and 71.850
Bruker AXS D8 Discover
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Effect of sputtering power on the growth rate and transmittance at 480 nm

Growth rate of the Al-doped ZnO thin films increases nearly linearly from 1.0 to 5.4 Rudolf Research / AutoEL Shimadzu SolidSpe-3700 DUVnm/min when the sputtering power increases from 50 to 200 W As the sputtering power increases from 50 to 150 W, the transmittance at 480 nm increases firstly from 83% to 92% and then decreases to 80%. The maximum transmittance of 92% was obtained at the sputtering power of 150 W.
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Ar flow rate effect on the electrical properties of Al doped ZnO film

Lakeshore 7704A Hall measurement http://www.caeonline.com/listing/pro duct/183090/lakeshore-7704a The resistivity of the films is decreases as the Ar flow rate is increased. The lowest resistivity of 9.74 x 10-4 .cm was obtained at the films with Ar flow rate of 80 sccm. The mobility increases with the Ar flow rate increases. The carrier concentration also indicates the same pattern as the mobility

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Outline
Introduction Fundamental of sputtering

Techniques of sputtering
Sputtering zinc oxide thin film Summary

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Summary
Sputter deposition, also known as physical vapor deposition is a widely used technique for depositing thin films on semiconductor wafers. The range of applications of sputtering and the variations of the basic process, is extremely wide.
ZnO thin films have been successfully deposited by rf sputtering and a promising transparent conductive oxide for application in thin film solar cells.
Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.

Thank you for your attention!!!

Student Presentation of FYS-9310 Material Science of Semiconductor, Oslo, May 29th, 2013

MiNa
ab.