Nanostructure and microstructure of laser-interference induced dynamic patterning of Co on Si

TL;DR

This study explores how nanostructures and microstructures of cobalt on silicon are formed under laser interference patterning, revealing how laser energy density influences the resulting nanopatterns and phases.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the relationship between laser energy density, film thickness, and resulting nanostructures and phases during laser-induced patterning of Co on Si.

Findings

Ordered nanopatterns form at specific energy densities due to capillary-driven transport.

Higher energy densities lead to silicide formation and different spatial ordering.

The native oxide layer influences the phase and pattern formation.

Abstract

We have investigated the nanostructure and microstructure resulting from ns laser irradiation simultaneous with deposition of Co films on Si(001) substrates. The spatial order and length scales of the resulting nanopatterns and their crystalline microstructure were investigated as a function of film thickness h and laser energy density E using a combination of atomic force, scanning electron and transmission electron microscopies. The results could be classified into two distinct categories based on the laser energy density used. It was observed that the thickness-dependent E required to melt the Co film (E_{Co}) was lower than Si (E_{Si}) primarily because of the higher reflectivity of Si. Consequently, for energy densities E_{Co}<E_{1}<E_{Si} that preferentially melted the Co film, spatially ordered nanoparticles were formed and were attributed to capillary-driven transport in the liquid phase. The ordering length scale corresponded to the interference fringe spacing \Lambda and the microstructure was primarily Co metal and a metal-rich silicide phase. The native oxide layer played an important role in minimizing the Co-Si reaction. For laser energy densities E_{2}\geq E_{Si}, spatially ordered patterns with periodic length scales L<\Lambda were observed and resulted from interference of an incident laser beam with a beam transmitted into the Si substrate. These nanopatterns showed one- as well as two-dimensional spatial ordering of the nanostructures. The microstructure in this laser energy regime was dominated by silicide formation. These results suggest that various nanostructures and microstructures, ranging from nearly pure metal to a Si-rich silicide phase can be formed by appropriate choice of the laser energy simultaneous with film growth.