In semiconductor manufacturing, potential wetting issues are becoming a concern as feature dimensions are continuously scaled down and novel materials with different wetting properties are introduced in new technology nodes. The wetting behavior of silicon nanopillars with different dimensions and surface modifications has been studied using static contact angle (θ), attenuated total reflection infra-red spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), and decoration by etching. The contact angle measurements showed a consistent deviation from the classic wetting models for patterned substrates with an hydrophilic surface termination (60°<θ < 80°). The ATR-FTIR and decoration studies gave evidence for partial wetting under these conditions, resulting from the formation of long-lasting nanobubbles. However the residual gas volumes estimated by ATR-FTIR were too small to explain the contact angle deviations. It is proposed that the apparent extension of the superhydrophobic regime to lower contact angles resulted from modifications caused by the manufacturing process to the wettability of the surface of nanopillars.
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