Deposition-last lithographically defined epitaxial complex oxide devices on Si(100)

The epitaxial growth of SrTiO3 on Si(100) substrates that have been lithographically patterned to realize deposition-last, lithographically defined oxide devices on Si is explored. In contrast to traditional deposition-last techniques which create a physical hard mask on top of the substrate prior to epitaxial growth, a pseudomask is instead created by texturing the Si substrate surface itself. The Si is textured through a combination of reactive ion etching and wet-etching using a tetramethylammonium hydroxide solution. Desorbing the native SiOx at high temperatures prior to epitaxial growth in ultrahigh vacuum presents no complications as the patterned substrate is comprised entirely of Si. The inverted profile in which the epitaxial oxide device layer is above the textured pseudomask circumvents shadowing during deposition associated with conventional hard masks, thereby opening a pathway for highly scaled devices to be created.

Automated summary

This study explores the epitaxial growth of SrTiO3 on lithographically patterned Si (100) substrates to achieve deposition-last, lithographically defined oxide devices on Si. Instead of using a physical hard mask on top of the substrate prior to epitaxial growth, a pseudomask is created by texturing the Si substrate surface itself. The Si is textured through a combination of reactive ion etching and wet-etching. Desorbing the native SiOx at high temperatures prior to epitaxial growth presents no complications as the patterned substrate is comprised entirely of Si. The inverted profile of the epitaxial oxide device layer above the textured pseudomask circumvents shadowing during deposition, providing a pathway for highly scaled devices.