Synthesis of Cubic Nanocrystalline Silicon Carbide (3C-SiC) Films by HW-CVD Method

Cubic nanocrystalline silicon carbide (3C-SiC) films have been deposited by using the hot wire chemical vapor deposition (HW-CVD) method at a low substrate temperature and at high deposition rate. Structural, optical and electrical properties of these films have been investigated as a function of H2 dilution ratio. The formation of 3C-SiC films has been confirmed from low angle XRD analysis, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and dark and photoconductivity measurements. The FTIR spectroscopy analysis revealed that the bond densities of Si-H and C-H decrease while that of Si-C increases with increase in the H-2 dilution ratio. The total hydrogen content decreases with increase in H-2 dilution ratio and was found < 15 at. % over the entire range of H-2 dilution ratio studied whereas the band gap show an increasing trend with increase in the H-2 dilution ratio.