Formation of silica coating films from spin-on polysilazane at room temperature and their stability in hot water

Spin-coating was conducted on single-crystal silicon substrates using a xylene solution of perhydropolysilazane (PHPS) to obtain 0.14-μm-thick PHPS films. The PHPS films obtained were suspended over various acidic and basic solutions at room temperature so that they were exposed to the vapors from the solutions. PHPS-to-silica film conversion was studied by infrared absorption spectroscopy, and the stability of the exposed films in hot water was examined by soaking the films in 80 °C water. The as-deposited PHPS films were found to be dissolved in water. When the PHPS films were suspended over water, the films were partially converted into silica, but the resultant film had low stability in hot water. Higher degrees of PHPS-to-silica conversion and higher stabilities in hot water were found on exposing the PHPS films to basic or acidic vapors. Exposure to highly basic vapors from aqueous solutions of ammonia and ethylamine was significantly effective in PHPS-to-silica film conversion, which provided silica thin films with high stability in hot water.