Preferential crystal growth of germanium by solid phase crystallization

We have investigated the preparation of crystalline germanium films by the solid phase crystallization (SPC) of amorphous germanium (a-Ge) precursor on single crystalline silicon substrates. The a-Ge precursor easily incorporates the impurities from the surface exposed to the air, and the impurities affect the crystallinity after the SPC. In the a-Ge precursor prepared by Knudsen-cell evaporation, the preferential crystalline growth following the Si substrates is disturbed by the high density of impurities and the random crystalline structures are formed. The a-Ge precursors prepared by electron beam evaporation have high impurity concentrations only near the surface because the impurity diffusion is slow because of the relatively high density. The preferential growth is successfully obtained in a-Ge precursor prepared on n-type Si substrates, although the random crystallization is slightly observed on p-type Si substrates. By sufficiently reducing the impurity concentrations by avoiding the air exposure, the preferential growth can be promoted on p-type Si substrates. The impurity incorporation because of the air exposure is sufficiently reduced for the preferential growth by covering a-Ge with a-Si blocking layers. This method is effective for future practical applications of SPC Ge films. (author)