Rapid isothermal processing

Abstract

The physics and technology of a relatively new, short-time, thermal processing technique, namely rapid isothermal processing (RIP), based on incoherent sources of light for the fabrication of semiconductor devices and circuits, are reviewed in this paper. Low-cost, minimum overall thermal budget, low-power consumption, and high throughput are some of the attractive features of RIP. The discussion of RIP, in the context of other thermal processes, history, operating principles, different types of RIP systems, various applications of RIP using single processing steps, and novel applications of RIP, including in situ processing and multistep processing, is described in detail. Current trends are in the direction of RIP-dominated silicon integrated circuit fabrication technology that can lead to the development of the most advanced three-dimensional integrated circuits suitable for applications such as parallel processing and radiation hardening. RIP is not only a superior alternative to furnace processing, but it is also the only way to perform certain crucial steps in the processing of compound semiconductor devices such as high-mobility transistors, resonant tunneling devices, and high-efficiency solar cells. Development of more accurate temperature measurement techniques and theoretical studies of heat transfer and other fundamental processes are needed. Dedicated equipment designed for a specific task coupled with in situ processing capabilities will dominate the future direction of RIP.

Structural and electrical characteristics of rapid thermally processed ferroelectric Bi4Ti3O12 thin films prepared by metalorganic solution deposition technique

“…Post-deposition annealing of the films was carried out in a rapid thermal annealing ͑RTA͒ system. The RTA process has been widely used in the semiconductor industry for diverse applications, 16 such as oxidation, doping, junction formation, and Ohmic contact formation. The great advantages of this method are a short annealing time and its relative process simplicity as compared with conventional furnace annealing.…”

Further Cost Reduction of Battery Manufacturing

“…When infrared and shorter wavelength photons (<0.8 μm) interact with the materials, both quantum effects and thermal effects take place. As compared to CFP, RTP provides: (i) higher throughput, (ii) lower microscopic defects, and (iii) lower operating temperatures [57]. RTP can also lead to lower surface roughness.…”

“…Due to different operating mechanisms, the processing temperature and thermal cycle times are lower in RTP and the performance, yield and reliability of semiconductor products processed by RTP are superior to CFP [57]. A detailed mechanism of operating principles of RTP can be found in [57]. The photon-matter interaction can be summarized by the simple expression: "photon + matter = thermal effects + quantum effects".…”

“…On the other hand, incoherent light sources are used to create photons with wavelength from ultra-violet (UV) to infrared region and the thermal mass is small. Due to different operating mechanisms, the processing temperature and thermal cycle times are lower in RTP and the performance, yield and reliability of semiconductor products processed by RTP are superior to CFP [57]. A detailed mechanism of operating principles of RTP can be found in [57].…”

Silicon Homoepitaxy by Rapid Thermal Processing Chemical Vapor Deposition (RTPCVD)—A Review

“…RTP (27) has found a wide range of applications in various areas of semiconductor device processing where tight control of both lateral and vertical dimensions of the active device region is required. By coupling a high power, incoherent radiant energy source to a Si wafer, RTP achieves in seconds what normally takes more than 30 min in conventional furnace processing.…”