Silicon nanocrystals by thermal annealing of Si-rich silicon oxide prepared by the LPCVD method

The Si-rich silicon oxide (SiOx) thin films are prepared on silicon crystalline substrates by low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) method. The oxygen concentration x are controlled by the ratio of the partial pressures of N2O and SiH4 gases in the reaction chamber. In order to induce the phase separation on SiO2 and Si nanostructures the samples are annealed at the temperatures 900–1100 °C. The structural and optical properties of the samples are investigated by Raman and infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy.