Deterministic three-dimensional self-assembly of Si through a rimless and topology-preserving dewetting regime

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Meher Naffouti - , X FAB France SAS (Author)
  • Marco Salvalaglio - , TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)
  • Thomas David - , X FAB France SAS (Author)
  • Jean-Benoit Claude - , Aix-Marseille Université, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) (Author)
  • Monica Bollani - , CNR, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Ist Foton & Nanotecnol, Lab Nanostruct Epitaxy & Spintron Silicon (Author)
  • Axel Voigt - , TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)
  • Abdelmalek Benkouider - , X FAB France SAS (Author)
  • Luc Favre - , Aix-Marseille Université, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Université de Toulon (Author)
  • Antoine Ronda - , Aix-Marseille Université, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Université de Toulon (Author)
  • Isabelle Berbezier - , Aix-Marseille Université, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Université de Toulon (Author)
  • Anne Delobbe - , Institut de Physique Nucleaire Orsay (Author)
  • Arnaud Houel - , Institut de Physique Nucleaire Orsay (Author)
  • Marco Abbarchi - , Aix-Marseille Université, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Université de Toulon (Author)

Abstract

Capillary-driven mass transport in solids is typically understood in terms of surface-diffusion limited kinetics, leading to conventional solid-state dewetting of thin films. However, another mass transport mechanism, so-called surface-attachment/detachment limited kinetics, is possible. It can shrink a solid film, preserving its original topology without breaking it in isolated islands, and leads to faster dynamics for smaller film curvature in contrast with the opposite behavior observed for surface-diffusion limited kinetics. In this work, we present a rimless dewetting regime for Si, which is ascribed to effective attachment-limited kinetics mediated by the coexistence of crystalline and amorphous Si phases. Phase-field numerical simulations quantitatively reproduce the experimental observations, assessing the main mass transport mechanism at play. The process can be exploited to obtain in a deterministic fashion monocrystalline islands (with 95% probability) pinned at approximate to 500 nm from a hole milled within closed patches.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number103402
Number of pages8
JournalPhysical review materials
Volume3
Issue number10
Publication statusPublished - 7 Oct 2019
Peer-reviewedYes
Externally publishedYes

External IDs

Scopus 85073456787
ORCID /0000-0002-4217-0951/work/142237408

Keywords

Keywords

  • PHASE-FIELD MODEL, THIN-FILMS, CAPILLARY INSTABILITIES, THERMAL AGGLOMERATION, EVOLUTION, GROWTH, NANOWIRES, ISLANDS, MOTION, CAHN