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Atomic-scale structure of SiO 2 / S i interface formed by furnace oxidation

1998; American Physical Society; Volume: 58; Issue: 20 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1103/physrevb.58.13670

1095-3795

Noriyuki Miyata, Heiji Watanabe, Masakazu Ichikawa,

Electron and X-Ray Spectroscopy Techniques

${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}/\mathrm{S}\mathrm{i}$ interfaces formed by furnace oxidation are investigated by scanning reflection electron microscopy (SREM). SREM observations reveal that the initial atomic steps on the Si(111)-7\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}7 and Si(001)-2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}1 surfaces are preserved at the ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}/\mathrm{S}\mathrm{i}$ interfaces and the interfacial atomic steps do not move laterally during furnace oxidation. A profile analysis of reflection high-energy electron diffraction indicates that the atomic-scale roughness at the ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}/\mathrm{S}\mathrm{i}$ interfaces is formed by furnace oxidation. The respective ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}/\mathrm{S}\mathrm{i}(111)$ and ${\mathrm{SiO}}_{2}/\mathrm{S}\mathrm{i}(001)$ interfaces are made up of about 5- and 3-nm-diam islands. Our results indicate that the layer-by-layer oxidation caused by two-dimensional island nucleation progresses during furnace oxidation.