Gas dynamic aspects of silicon thin layers deposition using excitation of a free jet of the working gas mixture by an electron beam
A film of microcrystalline silicon ({mu}c-Si:H) deposited at low temperature is a promising material for thin-film silicon solar cells with high efficiency and high stability. To deposit silicon thin films with high deposition rate and high quality, a novel gas-jet deposition method has been developed. The paper is devoted to experimental and numerical study of the method from the gas dynamic point of view. A numerical model of the flow field of the working gas mixture in the device was developed that provides predictions of the film thickness distribution over the substrate surface and was found to describe the measured data satisfactory. The model may be used to optimize the operating parameters of the device.