Interfaces of Al-Ni alloy and a-Si films in a thin film transistor (TFT) for liquid crystal display (LCD) were analyzed by high-resolution Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (HRBS). In conventional TFT-LCDs, a barrier metal, e.g. Cr or Mo, is used between Al-Ni alloy and a-Si films to prevent interdiffusion of Al and Si atoms. It was proposed that a combination of the Al-Ni films and the nitridation of a-Si is a promising technique for future TFT-LCDs that enables a direct contact of Al alloy and a-Si without any additional barrier metal. In order to realize a good contact between Al alloy and a-Si films, however, the interface characteristics such as elemental profiles have to be optimized. We carried out HRBS measurement using a magnetic spectrometer, which has a high depth resolution and nondestructive features, to determine the elemental depth profiles for the samples of Al-Ni (50 nm) / a-Si stacks, where the Al-Ni films were deposited by sputtering. The results revealed that the Ni contents and the oxygen contamination at the interface have a considerable influence on the contact characteristics. It is concluded that optimization of the elemental profiles at the extremely thin interface region is necessary for the future TFT-LCDs and HRBS is a powerful tool for such analyses.

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