Ohmic and Quasi-Ohmic Contacts to Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Thin Films

An extensive study of contacts properties to undoped and doped hydrogenated amorphous silicon, undertaken in our laboratory, has shown that ohmicity and contact quality are very dependent on the reactivity of the metal and the quality of the metal / a-Si:H interface. For example, metals such as Sc, Mg or Ti form exceptionally good ohmic (very low barrier height) contacts, while others like Al, Cu, Mo or V form very poor quasi-ohmic contacts (average barrier height) to undoped films. In addition, metals such as Y, Ho, Hf or Er create fair quasi-ohmic (low barrier height) contacts to undoped films, at room temperature. The barrier height and the magnitude of current density can be adjusted to some degree not only by the proper choice of metal work function but also by changing material bulk resistivity or/and interface quality. Consequently, specific attention is devoted to these parameters which not only determine the quality of ohmic contact but also the dominant conduction mechanism across the barrier.