Effects of External Hydrostatic Pressure on Finished Surface in Silicon Cutting

Abstract

In this paper, machining tests of silicon wafer under high hydrostatic pressure are reported. A lathe type machining tester was developed, and machining tests were conducted on the upper surface of silicon wafers whose crystal orientation was (001). Roughness of the finished surface was measured by using AFM, and the effect of hydrostatic pressure on roughness was studied. It was found that roughness decreases with increase of hydrostatic pressure. It was also found that the roughness depends on the cutting direction. The roughness is large when the cutting direction is parallel to the <100> direction, but it is small when the cutting direction is parallel to the <110> direction. Mechanism of effects of hydrostatic pressure and crystal orientation are discussed.