Electron-irradiation-induced divacancy in lightly doped silicon

Abstract

Two electron traps—A2 and A3—produced in n-type silicon by 1.5-MeV-electron irradiation are characterized by deep level transient spectroscopy. Activation energies of trapped majority carriers and capture cross sections for majority carriers at these levels are reported. From their production rates and annealing behaviors, they have been identified as different charge states of the same defect. Detailed annealing studies show that their annealing kinetics is first order with an activation energy of 1.47 eV. It is suggested that the defect is the divacancy and that dissociation is the likely process for its removal in these devices.