US4613382A
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Method of forming passivated polycrystalline semiconductors
Assignee: Hitachi Ltd
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Filing: 1985-03-14
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Granted: 1986-09-23
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Expires: 2005-03-14
Abstract
Abstract A semiconductor device includes a polycrystalline semiconductor film body having at least one element selected from a group consisting of hydrogen, fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, and cesium included mainly around grain boundaries of the polycrystalline semiconductor film. The simultaneous inclusion of one of the halogen elements and one of the monovalent metal elements of the group described above is more effective to quench charges of the elements included. The content of the elements included is up to 40% by atomic ratio. As a result, the electronic characteristic of the polycrystalline semiconductor film are substantially improved.
Inventors
- 👤 Yoshifumi Katayama
- 👤 Toshikazu Shimada
- 👤 Eiichi Maruyama
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-30 17:15
CPC Classifications
H; H10; H10P; H10P14/00; H10P14/20; H10P14/29; H10P14/2901; H10P14/2921; H10D; H10D30/00; H10D30/60; H10D30/67; H10D30/674; H10D30/6741; H10D30/6743; H10D30/6745; H10D62/00; H10D62/40; H10D62/80; H10D62/83; H10D62/834; H10D8/00; H10F; H10F77/00; H10F77/10; H10F77/16; H10F77/162; H10F77/164; H10F77/1642; H10P14/22; H10P14/24; H10P14/2923; H10P14/32; H10P14/3202; H10P14/3204; H10P14/3211; H10P14/34; H10P14/3402; H10P14/3404; H10P14/3411; H10P14/3438; H10P14/3441; H10P14/3442; H10P14/3444; Y; Y02; Y02E; Y02E10/00; Y02E10/50; Y02E10/546; Y10; Y10S; Y10S438/00; Y10S438/958
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 18
Claim 1
Independent Claim
170 words
A method of forming a semiconductor body, for use in forming at least one semiconductor active device therein, said semiconductor body comprising a polycrystalline semiconductor film on a substrate, comprising the steps of: (a) introducing at least one first element selected from the group consisting of fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine into a polycrystalline semiconductor film having dangling bonds at the grain boundaries thereof; and (b) introducing at least one second element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and lithium into said polycrystalline semiconductor film having said dangling bonds; each of at least one first element and each of the at least one second element being introduced in respective amounts of 100 ppm to 10% by atomic ratio, with the total amount of all of the first and second elements introduced being up to 40% by atomic ratio, whereby, due to introduction of approximately equal ambinets of both the first and second elements, the mobilities of both the n-type and p-type carriers in the polycrystalline semiconductor film are improved.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
170 words
A method of forming a semiconductor body, for use in forming at least one semiconductor active device therein, said semiconductor body comprising a polycrystalline semiconductor film on a substrate, comprising the steps of: (a) introducing at least one first element selected from the group consisting of fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine into a polycrystalline semiconductor film having dangling bonds at the grain boundaries thereof; and (b) introducing at least one second element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and lithium into said polycrystalline semiconductor film having said dangling bonds; each of at least one first element and each of the at least one second element being introduced in respective amounts of 100 ppm to 10% by atomic ratio, with the total amount of all of the first and second elements introduced being up to 40% by atomic ratio, whereby, due to introduction of approximately equal ambinets of both the first and second elements, the mobilities of both the n-type and p-type carriers in the polycrystalline semiconductor film are improved.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein the at least one first element and at least one second element are introduced around the monocrystalline grain boundaries of the polycrystalline semiconductor film having dangling bonds.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
54 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, including the step of forming the polycrystalline semiconductor film, said polycrystalline semiconductor film having dangling bonds at grain boundaries thereof, and wherein the at least one first element and at least one second element are introduced during forming of the polycrystalline semiconductor film.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
48 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, including the step of forming the polycrystalline semiconductor film, the polycrystalline semiconductor film having dangling bonds at grain boundaries thereof, and wherein the at least one first element is introduced during forming of the polycrystalline semiconductor film.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 4, wherein the at least one second element is introduced after forming the polycrystalline semiconductor film.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 4, wherein the at least one second element is introduced by thermally treating the polycrystalline semiconductor film in a plasma environment of said at least one second element.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
37 words
A method of forming a semiconductor device using the semiconductor body formed by the method of claim 1, comprising the step of forming at least one semiconductor active element at least in part in said semiconductor body.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein the polycrystalline semiconductor film is a polycrystalline silicon film.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
42 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein the polycrystalline semiconductor film is made of a polycrystalline mixed crystal selected from the group consisting of polycrystalline silicon-germanium, a polycrystalline III-V group compound, and a polycrystalline II-VI group compound.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein the grain sizes of crystals of the polycrystalline semiconductor film range from several nanometers to several millimeters.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein the polycrystalline semiconductor film has a thickness ranging from 100 nanometers to 100 μm.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein the at least one second element is introduced by thermally treating the polycrystalline semiconductor film in a plasma environment of said at least one second element.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, including the step of forming the polycrystalline semiconductor film, said film being formed at a maximum temperature of 700° C.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
59 words
A method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said at least one first element and at least one second element are introduced by thermally treating the polycrystalline semiconductor film in a plasma environment of said at least one of said at least one first element and at least one second element.
Claim 16
Independent Claim
160 words
A method of forming a semiconductor body, for use in forming at least one semiconductor active device therein, said semiconductor body comprising a polycrystalline semiconductor film on a substrate, comprising the steps of: (a) introducing at least one first element selected from the group consisting of fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine into said polycrystalline semiconductor film; and (b) introducing at least one second element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, sodium, potassium, rubidium, cesium, and lithium into said polycrystalline semiconductor film; each of the at least one first element and each of the at least one second element being introduced in respective amounts of 100 ppm to 10% by atomic ratio and the total amount of all of the first and second elements being up to 40% by atomic ratio, whereby, due to introduction of approximately equal amounts of both the first and second elements, the mobilities of both electrons and holes in said polycrystalline semiconductor film are improved.
Claim 17
Independent Claim
160 words
A method of forming a semiconductor body, for use in forming at least one semiconductor active device therein, said semiconductor body comprising a polycrystalline semiconductor film on a substrate, comprising the steps of: (a) introducing at least one first element selected from the group consisting of fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine into said polycrystalline semiconductor film; and (b) introducing at least one second element selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, sodium, potassium, rubidium, cesium, and lithium into said polycrystalline semiconductor film; each of the at least one first element and each of the at least one second element being introduced in respective amounts of 100 ppm to 10% by atomic ratio and the total amount of all of the first and second elements being up to 40% by atomic ratio, whereby, due to introduction of approximately equal amounts of both the first and second elements, the mobilities of both electrons and holes in said polycrystalline semiconductor film are improved.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of forming a semiconductor body according to claim 15, wherein the at least one second element is lithium.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1989-09-22 | 1990-03-24 | 1990-09-23 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1993-09-22 | 1994-03-24 | 1994-09-23 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1997-09-22 | 1998-03-24 | 1998-09-23 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |