Impact of laser treatment on hydrogenated amorphous silicon properties

Herein, the application of laser radiation to locally modify the hydrogen distribution within hydrogenated amorphous silicon films on a short time scale is studied. The impact of laser power and irradiation time on the temperature of the silicon layer during the laser treatment and the hydrogen outdiffusion is analyzed. Moreover, the resulting optoelectronic properties of the amorphous silicon are examined. On a timescale of a few seconds or less, the hydrogen concentration in the near-surface region of the silicon layer can be successfully decreased without major impact on the optoelectronic properties.