Formation of Ni-silicide at the interface of Ni4H-SiC

We report the relationship between the formation of Ni-silicide compounds and the change of the electrical behavior under different post-annealing conditions. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), micro-Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques were employed to study the formation of the various Ni-silicide compounds at the interface between Ni and 4H-SiC. Also, the electrical properties of the device were analyzed based on its current-voltage (I-V) characteristics under the same conditions. In our experiments, Ni₂Si began to form at a post-annealing condition about 700°C. However, a good Ohmic behavior was observed at a post-annealing condition of 1000°C.