Planarized deposition of high-quality silicon dioxide film by photoassisted plasma CVD at 300°C using tetraethyl orthosilicate

High-quality SiO 2 films were deposited by a photoassisted plasma CVD method using tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) at 300°C. Oxygen gas was excited in a high-density plasma which was kept apart from the substrate. Excited oxygen reacted with TEOS gas to generate reactive intermediates. The adsorbed intermediates migrated sufficiently for conformal coverage on the substrate surface and were photoexcited to produce SiO 2 films. Al steps were successfully planarized with the high-quality SiO 2 film. The planarization was explained to be attained by low activation energy for migration using a site-by-site migration model.