Pulse sequencing lateral growth method
AssigneeSharp Laboratories of America, Inc.
InventorsApostolos T. Voutsas, Robert S. Sposili, Mark A. Crowder
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Abstract
A process of lateral crystallization is provided for increasing the lateral growth length (LGL). A localized region of the substrate is heated for a short period of time. While the localized region of the substrate is still heated, a silicon film overlying the substrate is irradiated to anneal the silicon film to crystallize a portion of the silicon film in thermal contact with the heated substrate region. A CO2 laser may be used as a heat source to heat the substrate, while a UV laser or a visible spectrum laser is used to irradiate and crystallize the film.
Claims17
A process of lateral crystallization comprising:
- providing a silicon film on a substrate surface;
- exposing a localized substrate region at the substrate surface to a pulsed first laser source with wavelengths in the far infrared (IR) region;
- heating the localized substrate region in response to the first laser source;
- and
- exposing the silicon film to a pulsed second laser source with wavelengths in a range from ultraviolet (UV) to visible;
- and,
- annealing a portion of the silicon film in thermal contact with the localized substrate region in response to the second laser source.
A process of lateral crystallization comprising:
- providing a silicon film in thermal contact with an SiO2 layer on a substrate;
- exposing a portion of the SiO2 layer to a CO2 laser pulse with a duration of between approximately 0.01 milliseconds and 1 millisecond, whereby the exposed portion of the SiO2 layer is heated;
- and
- crystallizing a portion of the silicon film in thermal contact with the heated portion of the SiO2 layer by irradiating the portion of the silicon film with a pulsed, excimer laser;
- or a pulsed, frequency-doubled, solid-state laser.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.