Epitaxial Growth of Silicon Films on Sapphire and Spinel by Vacuum Evaporation

Abstract

Single-crystal silicon films are formed on (1̄01, 2) and (112̄, 0) sapphire and also on (111), (001) and (113) spinel surfaces by evaporation in a vacuum of 2×10^-6 Torr. The growth process of these single-crystal films is studied by reflection electron diffraction. The initial deposits on sapphire contain a few orientations, and further deposition leads to the eventual predominance of one orientation. The initial deposits on spinel consist of only one orientation parallel to the substrate orientation, and no orientation change occurs during film growth. A feature in the growth of silicon on these substrates is found to be the growth of the (110) fibrous structure at lower substrate temperatures.