Characterization of a point-contact on silicon using force microscopy-supported resistance measurements

Abstract

A conductive atomic force microscope (AFM) tip based on B-implanted diamond has been developed for the determination of the spatial distribution of charge carriers in semiconducting structures. The characteristics of this tip have been determined by studying the current–voltage behavior as a function of substrate resistivity and tip load. From this work a model of the electrical properties of the microcontact is emerging. It includes an Ohmic contribution to the overall resistance, which is related to the plastically deformed area, and contributions from a barrier. The tip imprints have been imaged with AFM and their physical dimensions are seen to match the requirements of the model. From resistance measurements on uniformly doped silicon a calibration curve has been established which can be used as a standard to convert measured resistance into resistivity.

Characterization of conductive probes for atomic force microscopy

“…The variations in shape and foite constant from tip to tip are inacceptable as well. The same holds for Boron implanted solid diamond after [6,7]. Generally, they are useful for Nanopotentiometry and SSRM on Si, but they are too heavy and too blunt to achieve high two-dimensional resolution.…”

“…The complete wafer was covered with a reflective gold coating at the backside of the cantilever. The nominal force constants are 3, 7, 18, and 73 N/m (types [5][6][7][8]. An SEM image of this type of probe is given in fig.…”

Scanning Thermal Microscopy (SThM)

“…• Electrostatic force microscopy (EFM), enabling the recording of the surface charge or potential variations based on changes in the forces acting on the tip (Terris, Stern, Rugar, & Mamin, 1989;Girard, 2001); • Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM), enabling the tracking of the surface potential, maintaining a constant distance between the tip and the surface (Nonnenmacher, O'Boyle, & Wickramasinghe, 1991;Bhushan & Goldade, 2000;Moczała, Sosa, Topol, & Gotszalk, 2014) • Conductive(Àprobe) atomic force microscopy (C-AFM), in which the current flowing through the tip is recorded while the surface is scanned in static (contact) mode (Murrell et al, 1993;Wielgoszewski, Gotszalk, Woszczyna, Zawierucha, & Zschech, 2008;Gajewski et al, 2015) • Piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM), in which the tip acts as an electrode to excite deformation of a piezoelectric sample (G€ uthner & Dransfeld, 1992;Huey et al, 2004) • Scanning capacitance microscopy (SCM), which enables the recording of variations in tip-surface capacitance (Abraham, Williams, Slinkman, & Wickramasinghe, 1991;Lányi, 2008) • Scanning spreading resistance microscopy (SSRM), similar to C-AFM but usually with a higher current range, enabling investigations of doping levels in semiconductors (De Wolf, Snauwaert, Clarysse, Vandervorst, & Hellemans, 1995), among other uses • Magnetic force microscopy (MFM), which uses a microprobe with a tip made of magnetic material (Sáenz et al, 1987). • SThM, which adds the capability of imaging thermal properties of the sample This list cannot be considered complete: there are a large variety of specialized scanning-based AFM modes, including those involving more than one cantilever being used at once (Sulzbach & Rangelow, 2010;Ivanova et al, 2008).…”

Surface-induced p-type conductivity in ZnO nanopillars investigated by scanning probe microscopy

“…[24][25][26] Scanning spreading resistance microscopy ͑SSRM͒ is another complementary AFMbased technique for local electrical characterizations. 27,28 In this paper, transport properties investigations in vertically integrated ZnO NPs were carried out both by SCM and SSRM.…”