Lateral Solid-Phase Epitaxy of Vacuum-Deposited Amorphous Si Film over Recessed SiO2 Patterns

Abstract
A single-crystal silicon-on-insulator structure had been fabricated by lateral solid-phase epitaxy (L-SPE) of vacuum-deposited amorphous Si (a-Si) film on Si (100) substrate with SiO2 patterns. It is essential in L-SPE of vacuum-deposited a-Si that the substrate surface be planarized by recessing SiO2 patterns. A 7µm-wide single-crystal area over irecessed SiO2 was grown by low temperature annealing (575°C, 20 h). Only a polycrystalline area was formed over the unrecessed SiO2 pattern. This is probably because of voids or the large stress field in a-Si film at the pattern edge step.