Substitutional carbon reduction in SiGeC alloys grown by rapid thermal chemical vapor deposition

The substitutional carbon reduction in Si1−x−yGexCy strained layers, annealed at high temperatures, increases the compressive strain in the originally strain-compensated alloys. From the rocking curve simulation, the maximum amount of carbon reduction was below 0.9% for the various samples which were annealed below 1000 °C in the nitrogen flow. The interstitial silicon injection by thermal oxidation of the Si cap on the Si1−x−yGexCy layer enhances the reduction of substitutional carbon to a concentration of 1.3%. Oxidation of Si1−x−yGexCy alloys yields a Ge-enriched Si1−xGex layer with the Ge concentration larger than the initial content, and the formation of 3C silicon carbide precipitate is observed by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.