Aqueous-Derived Thin Films and their Interfacial Interactions with Semiconductor Surfaces: A Spectroscopic Study
type: CreativeWork
description: Metal oxide systems are well known for their high dielectric constants, which are important for advanced microelectronics applications. The microelectronics industry currently employs vacuum-based techniques, such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD), to deposit metal oxide films. These vapor-phase deposition techniques suffer due to their slow deposition rates and their use of expensive equipment. Additionally, these processes sometimes require the use of harmful source gases and/or generate corrosive by-products. On the other hand, solution-processed thin films fabricated by spin-coating are advantageous because the process is simple, low cost, and scalable. Aqueous solution deposition is particularly attractive because it offers a green alternative to vapor-phase deposition and has been shown to produce uniform thin films by spin coating on hydrophilic silicon surfaces. However, it has been shown that silicon’s native oxide can degrade device performance due to its electronic interfacial states. In addition, aqueousderived thin films suffer from poor electrical performance due to mobile water and hydroxyl protons, often requiring very high temperature anneals to mitigate. Such anneals compromise the interface between the film and the silicon substrate, hence the electrical performance. One effective method to control the interface, and thus improve device performance, is to functionalize the semiconductor surface using wet chemistry. Here, we address the concerns of aqueous thin film deposition and present a method for alleviating the issues associated with current silicon-silicon oxide devices. We use wet chemical functionalization to graft selfassembled monolayers (SAMs) onto oxide-free silicon, then spin-coat an aqueous thin film on top of the SAM layer. The chemical stability of the SAM and the changes that occur at the interfaces between the Si/SAM/film stack during film deposition and dehydration are monitored by in situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscop…
abstract: Metal oxide systems are well known for their high dielectric constants, which are important for advanced microelectronics applications. The microelectronics industry currently employs vacuum-based techniques, such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD), to deposit metal oxide films. These vapor-phase deposition techniques suffer due to their slow deposition rates and their use of expensive equipment. Additionally, these processes sometimes require the use of harmful source gases and/or generate corrosive by-products. On the other hand, solution-processed thin films fabricated by spin-coating are advantageous because the process is simple, low cost, and scalable. Aqueous solution deposition is particularly attractive because it offers a green alternative to vapor-phase deposition and has been shown to produce uniform thin films by spin coating on hydrophilic silicon surfaces. However, it has been shown that silicon’s native oxide can degrade device performance due to its electronic interfacial states. In addition, aqueousderived thin films suffer from poor electrical performance due to mobile water and hydroxyl protons, often requiring very high temperature anneals to mitigate. Such anneals compromise the interface between the film and the silicon substrate, hence the electrical performance. One effective method to control the interface, and thus improve device performance, is to functionalize the semiconductor surface using wet chemistry. Here, we address the concerns of aqueous thin film deposition and present a method for alleviating the issues associated with current silicon-silicon oxide devices. We use wet chemical functionalization to graft selfassembled monolayers (SAMs) onto oxide-free silicon, then spin-coat an aqueous thin film on top of the SAM layer. The chemical stability of the SAM and the changes that occur at the interfaces between the Si/SAM/film stack during film deposition and dehydration are monitored by in situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscop…
author: Thomas, Milana Cherie
language: en
keywords: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Self-assembly (Chemistry), Monomolecular films, Phosphonates, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Aluminum oxide, Microelectronics
date published: 2018-12
date modified: 2026-07-27T21:19:32Z
provider: Texas Digital Library
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Texas Digital Library

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/10735.1/6429