Papers by Author: Gaetano Foti

Abstract: The fabrication of SiC MEMS-based sensors requires new processes able to realize microstructures on either bulk material or on the SiC surface. The hetero-epitaxial growth of 3C-SiC on silicon substrates allows one to overcome the traditional limitations of SiC micro-fabrication. In this work a comparison between single crystal and poly crystal 3C-SiC micro-machined structures will be presented. The free-standing structures realized (cantilevers and membrane) are also a suitable method for residual field stress investigation in 3C-SiC films. Measurement of the Raman shift indicates that the mono and poly-crystal 3C-SiC structures release the stress in different ways. Finite element analysis was performed to determine the stress field inside the films and provided a good fit to the experimental data. A comprehensive experimental and theoretical study of 3C-SiC MEMS structures has been performed and is presented.

Abstract: The achievement of nuclear detectors in Silicon Carbide imposes severe constraints on the electronic quality and thickness of the material due to the relatively high value of the energy required to generate an electron-hole pair (7.8 eV) in this material compared to the value for Si (3.6 eV). In this work, 4H-SiC charged particle detectors were realised using epitaxial layers of n-type doping as active region. The thickness of the epilayer is always below 80 μm with a net doping concentration in the range of 8 x 1013 to 1016 cm-3. These properties allowed the fabrication of Schottky diodes that operate well as radiation detectors. At low doping concentration, the epilayer is totally depleted at quite low reverse bias (≈ 50 V), thereby obtaining the maximum active volume.

Abstract: The design and the experimental results of some prototypes of SiC X-ray detectors are presented. The devices have been manufactured on a 2’’ 4H-SiC wafer with 115 m thick undoped high purity epitaxial layer, which constitutes the detection’s active volume. Pad and pixel detectors based on Ni-Schottky junctions have been tested. The residual doping of the epi-layer was found to be extremely low, 3.7 x 1013 cm-3, allowing to achieve the highest detection efficiency and the lower specific capacitance of the detectors. At +22°C and in operating bias condition, the reverse current densities of the detector’s Schottky junctions have been measured to be between J=0.3 pA/cm2 and J=4 pA/cm2; these values are more than two orders of magnitude lower than those of state of the art silicon detectors. With such low leakage currents, the equivalent electronic noise of SiC pixel detectors is as low as 0.5 electrons r.m.s at room temperature, which represents a new state of the art in the scenario of semiconductor radiation detectors.

Abstract: The fabrication of SiC MEMS-based sensors requires new processes able to realize microstructures on bulk material or on the SiC surface. The hetero-epitaxial growth of 3C-SiC on silicon substrates allows one to overcome the traditional limitations of SiC micro-fabrication. This approach puts together the standard silicon bulk microfabrication methodologies with the robust mechanical properties of 3C-SiC. Using this approach we were able to fabricate SiC cantilevers for a new class of pressure sensor. In the present research, chemical vapour deposition (CVD) in the low pressure regime of 3C–SiC on silicon substrates was carried out using silane (SiH4), propane (C3 H8) and hydrogen (H2) as the silicon supply, carbon supply and gas carrier, respectively. The resulting bow in the MEMS structures was evaluated optically and the residual stress in the films calculated using the modified stoney equation and determined to be approximately 300 MPa.

Abstract: The defects produced by 7.0 MeV C+ irradiation in 4H-SiC epitaxial layer were followed by Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy, current-voltage measurements and Transmission Electron Microscopy in a large fluence range (109-51013 ions/cm2). At low fluence (109 -1010 ions/cm2), the formation of three main level defects located at 0.68 eV, 0.98 eV and 1.4 eV below the conduction band edge is detected. The trap concentration increases with ion fluence suggesting that these levels are associated to the point defects generated by ion irradiation. In this fluence range the leakage current of the diodes does not change. At higher fluence an evolution of defects occurs, as the concentration of traps at 0.68 eV and 1.4 eV decreases, while the intensity of the level at 0.98 eV remains constant. In this fluence range complex defects are formed and an increase of a factor five in the leakage current is measured.

Abstract: The defects produced by irradiation with 7 MeV C+ induce a change in the electrical properties of 4H-SiC Schottky diodes. Capacitance-voltage and Current-voltage characteristics of the diodes fabricated in epilayers doped with different nitrogen concentrations were monitored before and after irradiation with different fluences. The Capacitance-voltage curves show free carrier compensation after low fluence irradiation and it was found that the reduction of carriers per ion induced vacancy increases with nitrogen content. The forward current-voltage characteristics of the diodes show an increase in the series resistance after irradiation. This change is mainly related to the high compensation occurring around the end of the ion range.

Abstract: The growth rate of 4H-SiC epi layers has been increased up to 100 µm/h with the use of trichlorosilane instead of silane as silicon precursor. The epitaxial layers grown with this process have been characterized by electrical, optical and structural characterization methods. Schottky diodes, manufactured on the epitaxial layer grown with trichlorosilane at 1600 °C, have higher yield and lower defect density in comparison to diodes realized on epilayers grown with the standard epitaxial process.

Abstract: The aim of this work is to improve the heteroepitaxial growth process of 3C-SiC on Si substrates using Trichlorosilane (SiHCl3) as the silicon growth precursor. With this precursor it has been shown that it is possible to simultaneously increase the growth rate of the process and avoid the nucleation of silicon droplets in the gas phase. Growth experiments were conducted on three (3) Si substrate orientations in order to assess the impact of the Si substrate on the resulting 3C-SiC film. X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis show the important role of the substrate orientation for the growth process. The different orientation of the substrate modifies the morphology of the 3C-SiC crystalline structure, mostly by changing the density of micro-twins and stacking faults inside the film.

Abstract: This study refers, through different microscopies, about the carbonization effects on differently oriented Si surfaces. A statistical study on the relationship between some process parameters (such as temperature, process time) and void dimensions and density, for three Si substrate orientations, is reported.

Abstract: In this work a comparison between atmospheric pressure (AP) and low pressure (LP) carbonization as the first step in the growth process of 3C-SiC on Si substrates is presented. Three different Si substrate orientations have been studied and compared. Characterization analysis has been performed by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), X-ray Diffraction Spectroscopy (XRD) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). XRD and AFM analysis show a lower roughness and a better quality for LPCVD carbonized samples. Substrate orientation plays an important role both in the generation as well as in the effect of such defects in the subsequent growth process, leading to a rougher SiC surface for growth on (110) Si while micro-twin effects are limited for growth on (111) Si, resulting in an extremely flat film.