Process for forming microcrystalline silicon material and product
US4492736A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 29, 1983 |
| Grant date | Jan 8, 1985 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 29, 2003 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH01L21/0262
- WIPO fieldSemiconductors
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A process for forming microcrystalline silicon material includes the steps of introducing a silicon-containing gas, hydrogen gas and a relatively inert gas into a work environment to form a preselected gas atmosphere, and establishing a glow discharge through the gas atmosphere. A microcrystalline thin film of silicon is formed on a substrate exposed to the discharge. In a preferred embodiment, the power level of the discharge is less than 0.08 watts per square centimeter and the film is deposited at a rate of no more than approximately two angstroms per second. Under these circumstances, the material deposited on the substrate is bombarded by ions of the relatively inert gas, causing the material to form a microcrystalline thin film.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.