Low temperature material reaction at the Ti/Si(111) interface

High resolution medium energy ion scattering has been used to study material reactions at the Ti/ Si(111) interface at temperatures which are anomalously low (—250-400 °C) relative to normal silicide growth temperatures (≥600°C). The depth-dependence of compositional mixing is inconsistent with the simple interfacial silicide formation process established for many metal/ silicon systems. The results suggest that mechanisms of material reaction other than interfacial silicide compound formation dominate the interfacial reaction at low temperatures, such as grain boundary diffusion leading to localized silicide formation at grain boundaries. © 1986, American Vacuum Society. All rights reserved.