Impact of annealing parameters on the structural and chemical properties of polymer-derived SiC thin films

This study examines the structural and chemical evolution of the polymer-derived SMP-10 thin films as a function of annealing time and solvent dilution. Increasing annealing times at 1200°C strongly influences thin film morphology and composition. Samples annealed to 5 h remained amorphous, whereas annealing for 10 h and longer led to the formation and growth of circular regions with a polycrystalline microstructure, serving as nucleation sites for β-SiC nanocrystals. Longer annealing times promote continuous oxide reduction, where samples annealed for 1 h consisted entirely of oxides, whereas 24 h annealing led to the development of characteristic Si–C bonds accompanied by an oxide content of 10%. In contrast, SMP-10 dilution had no significant effect on thin film evolution, exhibiting consistent shrinkage of 45-50% after annealing. These results demonstrate that annealing conditions govern thin film morphology and chemistry rather than precursor concentrations during the transformation of SMP-10 into nanocrystalline β-SiC thin films.