Dynamics of laser-induced formation of palladium silicide

Abstract

The formation of palladium silicide by laser irradiation of a thin Pd film evaporated on single‐crystal silicon has been studied. We used 18‐ns pulses from a Q‐switched Nd : YAG laser to induce the reaction. The process of laser‐induced silicide formation takes place through interdiffusion of the molten elements, followed by thermal quenching. A diffusion constant of 4×10⁻⁴ cm²/s was estimated. The reacted layer was found to consist of a mixture of different metal‐silicon compounds.