Recrystallization of silicon-on-sapphire structures at various amorphization-ion-beam energies

Silicon films on sapphire substrates are grown via recrystallization from the silicon-sapphire interface. An amorphous layer is formed using ion implantation with silicon ion energies of 90–150 keV. An X-ray rocking curve is used to estimate the crystalline perfection of the silicon films. After recrystallization, the silicon layer consists of two parts with different crystalline quality. The recrystallized silicon-on-sapphire structures have a highly perfect upper layer (for fabricating microelectronic devices) and a lower layer adjacent to the sapphire substrate containing a large number of defects.