Enhancement of solid-phase crystallization kinetics of amorphous silicon by annealing in a high-pressure H₂O ambient

In this letter, we report on the reduction in the amorphous silicon crystallization thermal budget by annealing films in an oxidizing ambient created by high-pressure H₂O. The crystallization times at 600 °C in an oxidizing ambient were reduced to less than half of that for a N2 ambient. We believe that the increase in silicon self-interstitial concentration caused by oxidation of silicon is responsible for enhancing the crystallization rates. Thin film transistors (TFTs) fabricated using this reduced budget crystallization process are suitable for Organic light emitting diode (OLED) display applications.