Improving stability of amorphous silicon using chemical annealing with helium

We report on the growth and properties of amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) materials and devices prepared using a chemical annealing technique. The chemical annealing technique consists of a layer-by-layer growth, where a thin a-Si:H layer is followed by annealing in a plasma beam of inert ions (helium). We show that high quality materials and devices can be fabricated using chemical annealing with helium. Infrared absorption data show that chemical annealing significantly improves the hydrogen microstructure and this improved hydrogen microstructure leads to improved stability of both materials and devices.