Phase formation and thermal stability of periodic Ni-silicide nanocontact arrays on epitaxial Si1−xCx layers on Si(1 0 0)

► The interfacial reactions of nanoscale Ni metal dots on single-crystal Si1−xCx/Si(1 0 0) substrates were investigated. ► The incorporation of C to Si substrates exhibited significant beneficial effects on improving the thermal stability of low-resistivity NiSi nanocontacts. ► The process window of low-resistivity NiSi in the Ni nanodots/Si1−xCx(1 0 0) sample was greatly extended by 200-250 °C as compared to that in the Ni nanodots/Si(1 0 0) sample. ► Highly curled and tangled amorphous SiOx nanowires with diameters of 8-20 nm were found to form on the 900 °C annealed Ni nanodots/Si1−xCx(1 0 0) samples.