Nanomechanics: response of a strained semiconductor structure.
The nanomechanical properties of thin silicon films will become increasingly critical in semiconductor devices, particularly in the context of substrates that consist of a silicon film on an insulating layer (known as silicon-on-insulator, or SOI, substrates). Here we use very small germanium crystals as a new type of nanomechanical stressor to demonstrate a surprising mechanical behaviour of the thin layer of silicon in SOI substrates, and to show that there is a large local reduction in the viscosity of the oxide on which the silicon layer rests. These findings have implications for the use of SOI substrates in nanoelectronic devices.
Liu
Feng
F
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, USA.
Rugheimer
Paul
P
Mateeva
E
E
Savage
D E
DE
Lagally
M G
MG