Low-Temperature Thermal Oxidation of Silicon in N₂O by UV-Irradiation

Abstract

A new thermal oxidation method using UV-irradiation has been proposed. Silicon dioxide of 3.5–4.0 nm thickness can be formed in 0.5 h at 200–500°C under N 2 O flow with UV-irradiation. Oxide formed by the present method is determined to be silicon dioxide. The fixed charge density at the Si/SiO 2 interface is relatively low for 500°C oxidation. It is estimated to be about 2×10 11 cm -2 without any thermal annealing.