Temperature dependence of blistering in hydrogen implanted Si and Ge

The temperature dependence of hydrogen blistering rates are measured in (1 0 0) Si, (1 1 1) Si and (1 0 0) Ge substrates implanted with 40 keV H- ions to a fluence of 6 × 1016 H cm−2 using real-time imaging of samples during annealing. The time taken for blisters to form was found to exhibit Arrhenius behaviour and to be characterised by a single activation energy over the temperature range examined (375–650 °C for Si and 300–600 °C for Ge). The extracted activation energies, which are believed to be the sum of a hydrogen-complex (H–X) dissociation energy and a hydrogen migration energy, were found to be 2.28 ± 0.03 eV for (1 0 0) and (1 1 1) Si and 1.4 ± 0.03 eV for (1 0 0) Ge. These results are discussed with reference to a model for blister formation and compared with previously reported measurements.