This collection of invited papers addresses surface conditioning techniques used in the manufacture of integrated circuits. It discusses wet and plasma-based contamination removal technologies that are used for removing contamination, particles, residue, and photoresist from wafer surfaces, covering both the process and the equipment required. This handbook reviews current cleaning technologies, as well as advanced methods under investigation for next generation processing, including supercritical fluid, laser, and cryoaerosol cleaning techniques.

From the Preface: “...It should be noted that this second edition is much more than a simple update of the original chapters because entirely new topics had to be addressed, although the fundamentals have not changed. Some of the material in the first edition could in fact make a useful supplement to the new second edition...As in the first edition, emphasis has been placed on industrial applications in the fab combined with authoritative explanations of the physical and chemical processes underlying wafer cleaning, surface preparation, impurity analysis, and contamination aspects...”

Target Audience: Engineers, scientists, and technicians that manufacture integrated circuits or supply the semiconductor and microelectronics industries; also upper-level students of semiconductor science and technology.

Table of Contents:

Introduction and Overview:

Overview and Evolution of Silicon Wafer Cleaning Technology

Overview of Wafer Contamination and Defectivity

Wet Chemical Process:

Particle Deposition and Adhesion

Aqueous Cleaning and Surface Conditioning Processes

Dry Cleaning Processes:

Gas-Phase Wafer Cleaning Technology

Plasma Stripping, Cleaning, and Surface Conditioning

Cryogenic Aerosols and Supercritical Fluid Cleaning

Analytical and Control Aspects:

Detection and Measurement of Particulate Contaminants

Surface Chemical Composition and Morphology

Ultratrace Impurity Analysis of Wafer Surfaces

Directions for the Near Future:

New Cleaning and Surface Conditioning Techniques and Technologies

Index