Electroless deposition of nickel-phosphorous nano-dots for low-temperature crystallization of amorphous silicon

Metal-induced crystallization (MIC) of amorphous silicon (a-Si) is an effective approach for low-temperature formation of polycrystalline silicon thin films. In this study, Ni-P nano-dots were directly deposited on amorphous silicon using a non-isothermal deposition (NITD) method without complicated pretreatment such as surface activation and sensitization. The density of these dots can be controlled by governing the process parameters such as reacting time and substrate temperature. Crystallization of Si was then achieved by annealing at 550 °C. It was found that Si crystallinity increased with Ni deposition time and temperature, and the amorphous Si film was fully crystallized after annealing when Ni-P was deposited at 200 °C for 30 s. We believe this technique can expand the applicability of electroless plating (EP) to metal-induced low-temperature growth of polycrystalline Si films.