A study of plasma-deposited amorphous SiOx:H films using infrared spectroscopy

The Si–O stretching mode in amorphous SiO _x:H (a-SiO _x :H) films, prepared by rf glow discharge decomposition of a SiH ₄–O ₂ mixture at 300°C, has been investigated by infrared absorption measurements as a function of the O content x. It was found that the ratio, I AS 1 /N Si , of the absorption intensity of the Si–O stretching mode centered around 1000 cm ⁻¹ to the density of Si atoms increased linearly with increasing x, up to x=0.6 . Above x=0.6 , the rate of increase of the I AS 1 /N Si values became slower. However, the ratio, I sum /N Si , of sum of the absorption intensities for both 1000 and 1150 cm ⁻¹ bands to the density of Si atoms increased linearly with increasing x for x>0.6 . We obtained the proportionality coefficient, A _SiO, of the Si–O stretching mode to be 1.48×10 19 cm ⁻². The characteristic of the Si–O stretching mode and the A _SiO are discussed.