Production of a-Si from supercooled liquid Si

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26709057
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Metal making/Resorce production engineering
• Research Institution: Tohoku University (2015-2016); Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (2014)
• Principal Investigator: OKADA JUNPEI 東北大学, 金属材料研究所, 准教授 (90373282)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: アモルファス / シリコン / 過冷却液体 / 静電浮遊法 / 急冷

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Amorphous (a-) silicon (Si) is an important semiconductor used for thin film transistors and solar panels. In 1975, Spear et al. demonstrated that thin films of a-Si deposited by Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) from silane (SiH4) are useful for semiconductor devices, which constitutes a breakthrough for a-Si applications1. On the other hand, it has long been challenged to obtain a “bulk” a-Si from liquid (l-) Si. However, all attempts have failed so far. In this research project, we tried to produce bulk a-Si directly from supercooled l-Si. Combining an electrostatic levitator with a quenching system, we quenched supercooled l-Si at 300 K below the melting temperature to obtain bulk a-Si.

Free Research Field

材料工学