Insights into the effects of Al-ion implantation temperature on material properties of 4H-SiC

Fanzhengshu Wu, Jie Zhang, Wei Xi, Yan Qing Chi, Qi Bin Liu, Lei Yang, Hong Ping Ma*, Qing Chun Zhang

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

In this study, Al implantation in 4H-SiC at the dose of 1 × 1014 cm−2 was investigated. The impacts of implantation temperature on the lattice quality, microstructure, surface composition, and band structure were all studied experimentally and theoretically. Atomic force microscope (AFM) images showed the difference in surface morphology between high-temperature and low-temperature implantation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterization indicated the lattice damage induced by implantation was recovered after the post-annealing at 1750 °C, except for the samples implanted at room temperature. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis suggested an oxidation effect during and after the implantation process, and it was more serious at lower implantation temperatures. As the implantation temperature incremented, the ratio of Si-C composition with high binding energy increased, the element valence became closer to that of ideal Al-doped 4H-SiC calculated by density functional theory (DFT); and the Fermi level shifted toward the valence band maximum (VBM), demonstrating the formation of efficient p-type doping. A more obvious asymmetric broadening in Raman spectroscopy was observed at higher implantation temperature. The theoretically obtained band structures and bond lengths from DFT calculations corroborated the experimental results, providing physical insights into the possible effect mechanism. In sum, correlations between the implantation process, external material properties, and internal crystal structure were recorded, paving the way for further research and future applications.

Original languageEnglish
Article number156014
JournalApplied Surface Science
Volume613
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Mar 2023
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • DFT
  • Energy band alignment
  • Implantation temperature
  • Raman
  • Silicon carbide
  • X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

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