Permeation of oxygen and water into a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposited silicon nitride film as function of deposition pressure

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In this work, we demonstrate that the permeability of a SiNx thin film (prepared by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition) to water and oxygen is closely related to the deposition pressure. By dynamic secondary ion mass spectrometry, we confirmed that water penetration occurs into the SiNx film only in the oxidized layer. Furthermore, positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy indicated that a SiNx film with a lower deposition pressure provides a smaller pore (free volume hole) radius, which is more effective in terms of blocking ambient molecular diffusion or penetration. The SiNx films were also applied as an encapsulation layer for organic light-emitting diodes; SiNx films with a lower deposition pressure exhibited higher encapsulation properties.