Growth temperature dependence of the Si(001)/SiO2 interface width

The growth temperature dependence of the thin thermally oxidized Si(001)/SiO2 interface width was studied using synchrotron x-ray diffraction. Nine samples with oxide thickness of about 100 Å were studied, with growth temperatures ranging from 800 to 1200 °C. The oxides were prepared by rapid thermal oxidation. We found that interfacial roughness decreases linearly with increasing growth temperature, with a measured interface width of 2.84 Å for the sample grown at 800 °C, and 1.76 Å when grown at 1200 °C.