Atomically controlled plasma processing for epitaxial growth of group IV semiconductor nanostructures

Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is useful to improve surface flatness and abruptness of doping profile and heterointerface by lowering epitaxial growth temperature for group IV semiconductors. By N and B atomic-layer formation and subsequent Si epitaxial growth on Si(100) without substrate heating, heavy atomic-layer doping has been demonstrated by using electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma enhanced CVD. Most of the incorporated N or B atom amount of about 7x10¹⁴ cm^-2in the atomic-layer doped Si film is confined within an about 2 nm-thick region. Moreover, using a 84 % relaxed Ge buffer layer formed on Si(100) by ECR plasma enhanced CVD, it is found that the hole mobility is enhanced by introduction of strain to nanometer order thick Si film, and the mobility enhancement as high as about 3 is observed.