Plasma production of nanocrystalline silicon particles and polymorphous silicon thin films for large-area electronic devices*

Powder formation in silane plasmas has been considered as a technology drawback because it might lead to the formation of macroscopic defects in the deposited layers. Here we summarize our recent efforts in controlling the formation of powder precursors, in particular, nanocrystalline silicon particles, aiming at their incorporation in the films. Indeed, the incorporation of clusters and crystallites along with SiHx radicals allows production of polymorphous silicon films with improved structure and transport properties with respect to standard amorphous silicon films.