DEVICE AND METHOD FOR MAKING DOPED SEMICONDUCTOR LAYERS

An apparatus for depositing a monocrystalline epitaxial layer of semiconductor material, e.g., silicon containing selected conductivity-determining impurities, on a semiconductor substrate comprising directing a beam of ions of said semiconductor material at the surface of the semiconductor substrate at an energy level below 0.5 Kev., and simultaneously directing a beam of the conductivity-determining impurity ions at at least a portion of the substrate surface whereby a layer of semiconductor material containing said conductivity-determining impurities is formed on said surface, and heating said layer to a temperature of at least 550 DEG C. to render said layer monocrystalline. The beams of semiconductor ions and of conductivity-determining impurity ions are preferably maintained at a high current density of at least 1 ma/cm2 at the surface of said semiconductor substrate even with a preferable relatively broad beam having diameters of up to 15 cm. Such wide beams are desirably achieved by ion beam apparatus having a high intensity source with a multi-aperture source exit plate.