Rapid, noncontact, sensitive, and semiquantitative characterization of buffered hydrogen-fluoride-treated silicon wafer surfaces by terahertz emission spectroscopy

Dongxun Yang; Abdul Mannan; Fumikazu Murakami; Masayoshi Tonouchi

doi:10.1038/s41377-022-01033-x

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Rapid, noncontact, sensitive, and semiquantitative characterization of buffered hydrogen-fluoride-treated silicon wafer surfaces by terahertz emission spectroscopy

Original Articles

- Rapid, noncontact, sensitive, and semiquantitative characterization of buffered hydrogen-fluoride-treated silicon wafer surfaces by terahertz emission spectroscopy
- Light: Science & Applications Vol. 11, Issue 12, Pages: 2982-2993(2022)
- Affiliations：
  
  Institute of Laser Engineering, Osaka University 2-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
- Author bio：
  
  Masayoshi Tonouchi (tonouchi.masayoshi.ile@osaka-u.ac.jp)
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1038/s41377-022-01033-x
  CLC：
- Published：31 December 2022，
  
  Published Online：25 November 2022，
  
  Received：13 July 2022，
  
  Revised：25 October 2022，
  
  Accepted：06 November 2022
- Accepted：
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Yang, D. X. et al. Rapid, noncontact, sensitive, and semiquantitative characterization of buffered hydrogen-fluoride-treated silicon wafer surfaces by terahertz emission spectroscopy. Light: Science & Applications, 11, 2982-2993 (2022).
DOI：

Yang, D. X. et al. Rapid, noncontact, sensitive, and semiquantitative characterization of buffered hydrogen-fluoride-treated silicon wafer surfaces by terahertz emission spectroscopy. Light: Science & Applications, 11, 2982-2993 (2022). DOI： 10.1038/s41377-022-01033-x.

摘要

Abstract

Advances in modern semiconductor integrated circuits have always demanded faster and more sensitive analytical methods on a large-scale wafer. The surface of wafers is fundamentally essential to start building circuits

and quantitative measures of the surface potential

defects

contamination

passivation quality

and uniformity are subject to inspection. The present study provides a new approach to access those by means of terahertz (THz) emission spectroscopy. Upon femtosecond laser illumination

THz radiation

which is sensitive to the surface electric fields of the wafer

is generated. Here

we systematically research the THz emission properties of silicon surfaces under different surface conditions

such as the initial surface with a native oxide layer

a fluorine-terminated surface

and a hydrogen-terminated surface. Meanwhile

a strong doping concentration dependence of the THz emission amplitude from the silicon surface has been revealed in different surface conditions

which implies a semiquantitative connection between the THz emission and the surface band bending with the surface dipoles. Laser-induced THz emission spectroscopy is a promising method for evaluating local surface properties on a wafer scale.

关键词

Keywords

references

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