Detailed study of surface and interface properties of μc-Si films

The properties of surfaces and interfaces of microcrystalline films deposited by radio-frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (RF-PECVD) were studied by spectroscopic ellipsometry. The effect of the low-power reactive ion etching (RIE) on the properties of the films was investigated. The surface properties could be effectively improved using RIE to eliminate of the top porous part of the films, without deterioration of bulk layer properties. Ellipsometric measurements from both film and substrate sides were used for the study of the interface properties of the various samples deposited on fused silica substrates. We show that the crystalline fraction that determined from modeling of ellipsometric spectra measured from the film side could be overestimated.