Defects Due to Metal Silicide Precipitation in Microelectronic Device Manufacturing: The Unlovely Face of Transition Metal Silicides

X-ray and optical characterization of β-FeSi2layers formed by pulsed ion-beam treatment

“…However, during such thermal annealing a substantial degree of diffusion of iron atoms in the basic material takes place due to the large diffusion coefficient of Fe in Si at high temperatures (D ∼ 5 × 10 −6 cm 2 s −1 at T = 1000 • C [14]). This can give rise to severe device yield and reliability problems [15].…”

Iron disilicide formed in a-Si〈Fe〉 thin films by magnetron co-sputtering

“…The reason is that these treatments lead to significant Fe diffusion into the depth of the Si host due to the large Fe diffusivity at high temperatures (DE5 Â 10 À6 cm 2 /s at TE1000 C). This causes the degradation of the main parameters of Si devices [4]. It is possible to overcome these difficulties by using pulsed-beam (laser, ion, electron) treatments, which affect only the surface layers of the material (B1 mm) for a short time (o1 ms) and which exclude the undesirable diffusion of the Fe impurity into the host material [5,6].…”

Scenario for a Yield Model Based on Reliable Defect Density Data and Linked to Advanced Process Control

“…After a longer storage period, the defect densities or increased haze values might be detected. Surface defect densities or haze are related to copper precipitates on the silicon wafer surface (28,29). These storage phenomena can be explained as copper diffuses at room temperature within the silicon bulk.…”