(658e) Rapid Synthesis of Dielectric Films by Microwave Assisted Cvd

Film deposition methods have been the focus of renewed interest in the past decade due to calls for cheaper and more environment friendly deposition techniques as well as better quality of films. This paper describes a novel deposition technique: Microwave assisted chemical vapor deposition (MACVD). This technique utilizes inexpensive equipment and works at temperatures close to room temperature and ambient pressures. Deposition rates are very high (>1 micron a minute) and the resulting films are of high quality i.e. high density, stability. Conventional deposition techniques such as epitaxy, e-beam evaporation and LPCVD can achieve high quality films but the financial and environmental costs are high. This study considers the MACVD of a high k dielectric film (Ta₂O₅) on silicon for dielectric and insulation applications. Films generated are dense and stable with thicknesses varying from 150 nm to 62 microns. Depth profile studies of 575nm thick MACVD derived films show results similar to that of high quality films generated via MOCVD. Characterization of the resulting films was done using XRD, SEM, XPS, AES and profilometry techniques.