Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
Wire-desorbed radicals present during hot-wire chemical vapor deposition growth have been measured by quadrupole mass spectrometry. For wire temperatures in excess of 1500 K, Si is the predominant radical desorbed from a new wire, with a minor contribution from SiH3. Aged wires showed profoundly different radical desorption kinetics, consistent with evaporation of Si from liquid silicon. It is proposed that this aging is related to silicide formation at the surface of the wire.