Tag Archives: Megasonic cleaning

Why Pre-Diffusion Cleans Are Essential for Silicon Wafer Processing

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Why Pre-Diffusion Cleans Are Essential for Silicon Wafer ProcessingSilicon wafers must be completely clean before they go through the diffusion process. If contaminating particles are present on the wafer surfaces during the diffusion process, they will cause defects in the final semiconductor product. Pre-diffusion cleaning can be carried out with several methods. RCA clean and Piranha etch use chemicals to strip away wafer contamination. Megasonic cleaning uses high-frequency sound waves to dislodge surface contaminants and particles. No matter which cleaning method is chosen, cleaning must be done to reduce contaminating particle counts to a minimum. An experienced manufacturer of wet process stations can integrate the required cleaning methods into wet benches. They can then ensure that the silicon wafers are cleaned thoroughly.

RCA Clean is a Common Silicon Wafer Cleaning Method

RCA clean was originally developed at the RCA corporation and remains a popular all-round silicon wafer cleaning method. It consists of two parts: Standard Clean 1 and 2 (SC1 and SC2). SC1 removes organic material but leaves metallic contamination behind. SC2 cleans the remaining metallic particles and produces a completely clean wafer.

The SC1 cleaning bath contains a solution of ammonium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide. The cleaning bath is heated to about 75 degrees centigrade, and the wafers are immersed for 10 to 15 minutes. All organic matter and many insoluble contaminants are removed, but some metallic ions stay attached to the wafer surface.

The metallic ions are removed during the SC2 cleaning step. The wafers are placed into a solution of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide. The solution is heated to about 75 degrees centigrade, and the wafers are immersed for about 10 minutes. Once the wafers are rinsed with deionized water and dried, they are ready for the diffusion processing steps.

Piranha Etch Quickly Cleans Heavy Contamination

When silicon wafers are heavily contaminated or need to be stripped of photoresist from previous process steps, a Piranha mixture is often used to begin the wafer cleaning process. The mix of sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide quickly removes large amounts of mainly organic contaminants. While it works more rapidly than RCA clean, it operates at an elevated temperature of 130 to 180 degrees centigrade and is hard to control precisely. Modutek’s proprietary “bleed and feed” process control improves process stability. The advanced controls allow for more precise temperature settings and better cleaning performance while maintaining the rapid removal of contaminants.

Megasonic Cleaning Provides Improved Removal of Contaminating Particles

Megasonic cleaning uses high-frequency sound waves in the cleaning bath to dislodge light contamination from wafer surfaces. The cleaning method features reduced use of toxic and expensive chemicals while reducing particle counts to a minimum. Even the smallest sub-micron particles can distort diffusion and cause defects in the final semiconductor product. These tiny particles are especially difficult to remove because they tightly adhere to wafer surfaces due to static charge and surface tension. Megasonic cleaning generates microscopic bubbles in the cleaning solution. When these bubbles collapse, the resulting scrubbing action removes the particles.

Modutek’s Wet Benches Support Pre-Diffusion Cleans for Specific Wafer Processing Requirements

Modutek wet process stations support all standard silicon wafer cleaning methods. Pre-diffusion cleans can be integrated into a wet bench to satisfy specific customer requirements. Since Modutek designs and builds equipment in-house, wet bench stations can be customized to meet specific customer needs. Based on its in-house expertise, Modutek can recommend solutions for wafer processing and propose equipment from its complete line of wet process stations. Once the equipment is built and delivered, Modutek can provide continuous customer support for the supplied stations. Contact Modutek for a free consultation to discuss your specific process requirements.

Why Pre-Diffusion Cleans Are Important for Silicon Wafer Cleaning

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Why Pre-Diffusion Cleans Are Important for Silicon Wafer CleaningPre-diffusion cleans are carried out several times during the semiconductor manufacturing process, and each time the chemical residues and particles on the wafers have to be removed as completely as possible. If silicon wafers still have surface contamination when they are placed in the diffusion oven, diffusion may be uneven and the resulting semiconductor products may be defective.

The several methods available for wafer cleaning either use chemical baths or Megasonic cleaners to remove surface contaminants from the silicon wafers. Modutek offers a complete line of wet bench stations that support pre-diffusion wafer cleaning as well as other semiconductor fabrication processes.

The Importance of the Pre-Diffusion Wafer Cleaning Process

The contamination with particles on silicon wafer surfaces prior to diffusion is a key factor in reducing the yield of electronic components in semiconductor fabrication plants and research facilities. Particles may be diffused into the silicon and create electric defects or they may block diffusion behind the particle. After diffusion, particles may affect etching and interfere with microscopic conductors. The resulting electronic components may have to be scrapped.

As microscopic structures in silicon become smaller and more detailed, large particles become more disruptive on both an electrical and the physical scale. Even tiny particles that were previously considered unimportant can affect the smallest silicon structures. When electronic products are defective, it affects facility productivity and reduces throughput. Performance is lower and profitability is reduced. In some cases, the products are not defective but their life expectancy may be reduced and the manufacturer’s reputation is affected. An effective pre-diffusion wafer cleaning process results in fewer defects and a higher quality output.

How Pre-Diffusion Cleaning is Carried Out

Before being placed in the diffusion oven, silicon wafers are immersed in chemical or Megasonic baths. Surface impurities are dislodged, dissolved or chemically neutralized. Complete cleaning may take more than one process and the following methods are commonly used.

RCA cleaning is a popular method consisting of two components, SC1 and SC2, where the SC stands for standard clean. For SC1, the wafers are immersed in a solution of ammonium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide. The aggressive chemicals remove all organic compounds from the wafer surfaces but may leave traces of metallic contamination. As a result, during SC2, the wafers are placed in a mixture of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide that removes any remaining metal ions.

An alternative to the RCA standard clean methods is the Piranha clean, especially useful for applications with heavy wafer contamination. It consists of a sulfuric and hydrogen peroxide mixture that rapidly removes material such as photo resist. A further feature of Piranha clean is the hydroxylation of the silicon wafer surface, making it hydrophilic or attractive to water, a characteristic useful for some subsequent process steps.

Megasonic cleaning uses high-frequency sound waves in a cleaning solution to dislodge contaminants from the surface of the silicon wafer. This cleaning method does not use harsh chemicals, and a generator is used to produce a signal in the MHz range at a specified power level. A transducer in the cleaning tank converts the signal to sound waves in water. The sound waves create microscopic cavitation bubbles with a strong scrubbing action that removes particles. Depending on the manufacturing process, semiconductor manufacturing facilities use one of these methods for pre-diffusion cleaning.

Modutek Pre-Diffusion Cleaning Equipment

Modutek’s wet bench chemical stations provide a complete range of pre-diffusion cleaning solutions. The company can offer equipment that supports each of the above cleaning methods as well as other semiconductor fabrication processes. All of Modutek’s pre-diffusion cleaning baths produce silicon wafers with extremely low particle counts while all of the company’s equipment is designed for high quality output, fast processing and efficient operation resulting in superior manufacturing facility performance. Contact Modutek for a free consultation or quote on equipment designed to meet specific manufacturing requirements.

Reviewed and Approved by Douglas Wagner
President & CEO, Modutek Corporation