Impurity analysis of synthetic diamond for electronics and quantum physics
Résumé
Diamond is a precious and rare stone that presents exceptional physical properties. With a band-gap of 5.47 eV at room temperature (RT) [1] and compare to other wide band-gap semiconductors (as SiC, GaN), diamond benefits of a higher breakdown electric field (2x107 V/cm [2]), a higher intrinsic carrier mobilities (higher than 3200cm²/V.s for holes and in the range of 2400–4500 cm²/V.s for electrons [3–5] at RT) and a higher thermal conductivity (24W/cm.K at RT [6], 5 time the one of copper). Moreover, this material is radiation hard [7] and chemically inert. Therefore, diamond is considered as the ultimate ultra-wide band-gap semiconductor.
Diamond can be synthesized either by high pressure and high temperature (HPHT) process that reproduce the conditions created on Earth, but also by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) at low pressure. While this last growth method is assisted by micro-wave plasma (MPCVD), impurities can be controlled in a way that diamond is extremely useful for research in power electronics, through its doping with boron (p-type) or phosphorus (n-type), and in quantum physics, through the spin manipulation of the nitrogen-vacancy center. Indeed, synthesis of diamond has to be perfectly mastered for such applications, meaning that impurity levels, that depends on growth conditions, need to be very well controlled.
At GEMaC, a CAMECA IMS7f is dedicated to research programs and diamond synthesis is performed on MPCVD reactors. All diamond samples grown in GEMaC are systematically analysed by SIMS after growth, and before any other physical analysis. In this work, we report the analysis conditions we use for the analysis of voluntary and involuntary impurities (1H, 11B, 12C, 13C, 28Si and 31P) to overcome inherent challenges of measurements due to the material itself and the analysis environment.
References:
[1] C.D. Clark et al. Proc. R. Soc. London A 277 (1964) 312.
[2] J.E. Butler et al. Semicond. Sci. Technol. 18 (3) (2003) S67–S71.
[3] F. Nava et al. Solid State Com. 33 (1980) 475.
[4] J. Isberg et al. Science 297 (2002) 1670.
[5] J. Isberg et al. Phys. Stat. Sol. A 202 (2005) 2194.
[6] H. Windischmann, CVD diamond for thermal management, in M.H.Nazare, A.J. Neves (Eds.), Properties, Growth and Applications of Diamond, No.26 in EMIS Data reviews Series, INSPEC, Institute of Electrical Engineers, London, 2001, pp. 410–415 (Chapter C2.2).
[7] H. Kagan, Nucl. Instrum. Methods A 546 (1–2) (2005) 222–227.
Domaines
Physique [physics]Origine | Fichiers produits par l'(les) auteur(s) |
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