Epitaxial diamond-hexagonal silicon nano-ribbon growth on (001) silicon

Silicon crystallizes in the diamond-cubic phase and shows only a weak emission at 1.1 eV. Diamond-hexagonal silicon however has an indirect bandgap at 1.5 eV and has therefore potential for application in opto-electronic devices. Here we discuss a method based on advanced silicon device processing to form diamond-hexagonal silicon nano-ribbons. With an appropriate temperature anneal applied to densify the oxide fillings between silicon fins, the lateral outward stress exerted on fins sandwiched between wide and narrow oxide windows can result in a phase transition from diamond-cubic to diamond-hexagonal Si at the base of these fins. The diamond-hexagonal slabs are generally 5–8 nm thick and can extend over the full width and length of the fins, i.e. have a nano-ribbon shape along the fins. Although hexagonal silicon is a metastable phase, once formed it is found being stable during subsequent high temperature treatments even during process steps up to 1050 ºC.