Method of forming thin film, substrate having thin film formed by the method, photoelectric conversion device using the substrate

Abstract

The present invention provides a method of forming a thin film containing a metal oxide as the main component, the film thickness of which is relatively uniform, at a high film deposition rate over a wide area and over a long time. The present invention is a method for forming a thin film containing a metal oxide as the main component on a substrate using a mixed gas stream containing a metal chloride, an oxidizing material, and hydrogen chloride, by a thermal decomposition method at a film deposition rate of 4500 nm/min. or greater, performing at least one selected from: 1) prior to mixing the metal chloride and the oxidizing material in the mixed gas stream, contacting hydrogen chloride with at least one selected from the metal chloride and the oxidizing material, and 2) forming a buffer layer in advance on a surface of the substrate on which the thin film containing a metal oxide as the main component is to be formed.

1 - 9 . (canceled)  
     
     
         10 . A substrate having a thin film, comprising a substrate, a buffer layer formed on the substrate, and a thin film that is formed on the buffer layer and contains a metal oxide as the main component, 
 wherein the buffer layer has bumps on its surface of the thin film side, and the bumps have a height of 10 to 200 nm.    
     
     
         11 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 , wherein a metal oxide or fine metallic particles constitute the buffer layer.  
     
     
         12 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  2 , wherein the buffer layer and the thin film contain the same type of metal oxide.  
     
     
         13 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 , wherein the buffer layer has the thickness of 10 to 250 nm.  
     
     
         14 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 , wherein the substrate further comprises an undercoating film formed between the substrate and the thin film.  
     
     
         15 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  5 , wherein the undercoating film includes the first undercoating layer formed on the substrate and the second undercoating layer formed on the first undercoating layer.  
     
     
         16 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  6 , wherein the second undercoating layer contains silicon oxide or aluminum oxide as the main component.  
     
     
         17 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  7 , wherein the silicon oxide is non-crystalline silicon oxide and the aluminum oxide is non-crystalline aluminum oxide.  
     
     
         18 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  6 , wherein the first undercoating layer contains tin oxide or titanium oxide as the main component, and the second undercoating layer contains silicon oxide or aluminum oxide as the main component.  
     
     
         19 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  9 , wherein the silicon oxide is non-crystalline silicon oxide and the aluminum oxide is non-crystalline aluminum oxide.  
     
     
         20 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  5 , wherein the undercoating film contains silicon oxide, aluminum oxide, silicon oxynitride, silicon oxycarbide, tin oxide or titanium oxide as the main component.  
     
     
         21 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  2 , wherein the buffer layer contains at least one material selected from tin oxide with a rutile structure, titanium oxide with a rutile structure and titanium oxide with an anatase structure as the metal oxide.  
     
     
         22 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 , wherein the buffer layer is formed at a slower film deposition rate than the film deposition rate for the thin film.  
     
     
         23 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 , wherein the buffer layer is formed through a chemical vapor deposition method.  
     
     
         24 . The substrate having a thin film according to  claim 14 , wherein the buffer layer is formed through an online chemical vapor deposition method.  
     
     
         25 . The substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 , wherein the thin film is formed using a mixed gas stream containing a metal chloride, an oxidizing material, and hydrogen chloride by a thermal decomposition method at a film deposition rate of 4500 nm/min. or greater.  
     
     
         26 . A photoelectric conversion device comprising the substrate having a thin film according to claim  1 .