Ni-induced selective nucleation and solid phase epitaxy of large-grained poly-Si on glass

We investigated the formation of large-grain polycrystalline silicon films on glass substrates for application in low-cost thin film crystalline silicon solar cells. Since use of glass substrates constrains process temperatures, our approach to form large-grain polycrystalline silicon templates is selective nucleation and solid phase epitaxy (SNSPE). In this process, selective crystallization of an initially amorphous silicon film, at lithographically predetermined sites, enables grain sizes larger than those observed via random crystallization. Selective herogeneous nucleation centers were created on undoped, 75 nm thick, amorphous silicon films, by masked implantation of Ni islands, followed by annealing at temperatures below 600 °C. At this temperature, the Ni precipitates into NiSi2 particles that catalyze the transition from the amorphous to the crystalline Si phase. Seeded crystallization begins at the metal islands and continues via lateral solid phase epitaxy (SPE), thus obtaining crystallized regions of several tens of square microns in one hour. We have studied the dependence of the crystallization rate on the Ni-implanted dose in the seed, in the 5x10(15)/cm(3) - 10(16)/cm(3) range. The large grained polycrystalline Si films were then used as a substrate for molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) depositions of 1 ?m thick Si layers. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis showed a strong correlation between the substrate morphology and the deposited layer. The layer presented a large grain morphology, with sizes of about 4 ?m.