The role of atmospheric oxygen and water in the generation of water marks on the silicon surface in cleaning processes

✍ Scribed by M. Watanabe; M. Hamano; M. Harazono

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1989
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 437 KB
• Volume: 4
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0921-5107
• DOI: 10.1016/0921-5107(89)90278-x

✦ Synopsis

Water marks are one of the most common contamination problems, which induce various' kinds" of device defects in (LSI) technology. Water marks have been attributed to residues of water used in the cleaning process. However, the purity of deionized water used in LSI fabrication today is extremely high. Nevertheless, we recently ¢ound that water marks were induced even with such pure water. Water marks are induced on the silicon and poly-silicon surfitce during the drying process after HF etching. 7he mechanism that induces" water marks is as Jollows." (1) dissolution of 0,_ gas into a water drop on the silicon su~ace; (2) oxidation of the silicon surface and the dissolution of oxidized silicon (probably H,_SiOs) into the water," (3) drying of the water drops and deposition of' residual tt:SiO~ on the s'ilicon.