LAUSR

The authors have designed experiments to test three different approaches for the incorporation of carbon atoms into amorphous SiNx or SiO2 films grown using atomic layer deposition (ALD). In each approach, the surface reactions of the precursors were monitored in situ using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. In the first approach, for depositing carbon-containing SiNx films using ALD, carbon was introduced into the process through a silicon precursor, SiCl2(CH3)2, followed by NH3 plasma exposure. While our infrared data show that SiCl2(CH3)2 reacts with an –NHx (x = 1, 2) terminated surface created after NH3 plasma exposure, –CH3 groups are eliminated in the precursor adsorption step leading to no significant carbon in the films. In the second approach, the authors hypothesized a three-step ALD process, which would involve Si-, C-, and N-containing precursors, and tested the reactivity of two carbon-containing precursors, CH3I and Al(CH3)3, with H- and Cl-terminated silic...