We examined by transmission electron microscopy the structure and crystallization behavior of hydrogenerated and non-hydrogenerated amorphous germanium films (a-Ge:H and a-Ge) prepared by sputtering to figure out the effects of hydrogen on them. In pair-distribution function, first and second peaks at the interatomic distance of 0.26 and 0.40 nm, respectively, were found to be higher and sharper in a-Ge:H than in a-Ge; therefore amorphous structure was organized in a more ordered state within a short range by hydrogeneration. On thermal annealing, fine nanograins (FGs) of about 10 nm in size appeared preferentially at 350 °C and above in a-Ge:H, which is in contrast with the formation of coarse particles of about 100 nm in size at 500 °C in a-Ge. Hydrogeneration would make a certain number of short-range ordered clusters distributed in the amorphous matrix, inducing the preferential formation of FGs at lower temperatures.

中文翻译：

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氢对溅射沉积非晶锗膜结构和结晶行为的影响

我们通过透射电子显微镜检查了通过溅射制备的氢化和非氢化非晶锗膜（a-Ge：H和a-Ge）的结构和结晶行为，以了解氢对它们的影响。在成对分布函数中，发现在a-Ge：H原子间距离为0.26和0.40 nm处的第一个和第二个峰比在a-Ge中更高和更尖锐。因此，非晶态结构通过氢化在短范围内以更有序的状态组织。通过热退火，在a-Ge：H中，在350°C和更高温度下，优先出现约10 nm的细纳米颗粒（FG），这与在500°C下形成约100 nm的粗颗粒形成对比在a-Ge。