Roles of hydrogen in amorphous oxide semiconductor In-Ga-Zn-O: Comparison of conventional and ultra-high-vacuum sputtering

We investigated roles of hydrogen on physical properties of a-IGZO films and thin-film transistors (TFTs) by comparing standard and ultra-high vacuum (UHV) sputtering systems. It was confirmed that the impurity hydrogens come mainly from the residual gas in the deposition chamber and the molecules adsorbed to the surface of the sputtering target. It was found impurity hydrogen has unfavorable effects as follows; (i) enhances selective Zn desorption during film deposition, and (ii) weakens chemical bonds of the resulting film, causing temperature instability. On the other hand, the UHV a-IGZO films with less hydrogen had low density and exhibited structural instability, suggesting that some hydrogens would have a favorable effect to enhance structural relaxation rate and to form denser and more stable structures during film deposition at room temperature. The revealed hydrogen effects are discussed in relation to those in amorphous silicon and silicon dioxide.