Conductive TiN thin films grown by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition: Effects of N-sources and thermal treatments

This work consists of optimizing TiN plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition using two different N-sources: NH3 and N-2. In addition to maximizing the growth per cycle (GPC) and to shorten the deposition duration, comprehensive in situ and ex situ physicochemical characterizations give valuable information about the influence of the N-source nature, their dilution in Ar, and the plasma power on layer's final properties. N-2 and NH3 dilutions within Ar are extensively investigated since they are critical to decreasing the mean free path (l) of plasma-activated species. A 1:1 gas ratio for the N-sources:Ar mixture associated with low flows (20 sccm) is optimal values for achieving highest GPCs (0.8 A/cycle). Due to lower reactivity and shorter of the excited species, N-2 plasma is more sensitive to power and generator to-sample distance, and this contributes to lower conformality than with NH3 plasma. The resistivity of the initial amorphous films was high (>= 1000 mu Omega cm) and was significantly reduced after thermal treatment (<= 400 mu Omega cm). This demonstrates clearly the beneficial effect of the crystallinity of the film conductivity. Though N-2 process appears slightly slower than the NH3 one, it leads to an acceptable film quality. It should be considered since it is nonharmful, and the process could be further improved by using a reactor exhibiting optimized geometry.

Automated summary

This study focuses on optimizing TiN plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition by using two different N-sources: NH3 and N-2. Comprehensive physicochemical characterizations were performed to understand the influence of the N-source nature, their dilution in Ar, and the plasma power on the final properties of the deposited layer. It was found that a 1:1 gas ratio of N-sources:Ar mixture, along with low flows (20 sccm), resulted in the highest growth per cycle (GPC) values. The N-2 plasma exhibited slightly slower deposition but acceptable film quality, making it a nonharmful alternative that can be further improved with optimized reactor geometry.