Effect of ion bombardment on the a-Si:H based surface passivation of c-Si surfaces

We have found that controlled Ar ion bombardment enhances the degradation of a-Si:H based surface passivation of c-Si surfaces. The decrease in the level of surface passivation is found to be independent on the ion kinetic energy (7–70 eV), but linearly proportional to the ion flux (6×1014–6×1015?ions?cm?2?s?1). This result suggests that the ion...

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon deposited under accurately controlled ion bombardment using pulse-shaped substrate biasing

We have applied pulse-shaped biasing to the expanding thermal plasma deposition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon at substrate temperatures ? 200?°C and growth rates around 1 nm/s. Substrate voltage measurements and measurements with a retarding field energy analyzer demonstrate the achieved control over the ion energy distribution for...