The getters in silicon

Abstract

The processes of gettering of fast-diffusing metal impurities and structure defects in silicon, mainly used in the production of integrated circuits, power high-voltage devices, nuclear-doped silicon, are considered. The getters based on structural defects and gas-phase getters based on chlorine-containing compounds are analyzed. It is noted that for the formation of getters on the basis of structural defects, it is necessary to create internal sources for generation of dislocations and formation of precipitate — dislocation clusters. It is shown that dislocations are generated in the mouths of microfractures, which then form a sedentary dislocation grid on the non-working side of the plates. In the second case, defects are created in the area of the plate adjacent to the active layer of the electronic component. The process of creating an internal getter is based on the decomposition of a supersaturated solid oxygen solution in silicon, due to which a complex defect medium consisting of various precipitate-dislocation clusters is formed in the crystal. The packing defect as oxide precipitate with a cloud of Frank’s loops is formed. Two variants of creating an internal getter are considered — first is associated with the distillation of an oxygen impurity from the near-surface region of the plate, the second is associated with a fine adjustment of the distribution of vacancies along the plate thickness. The analysis of the influence of the getter as the defect structure reducing the magnitude of mechanical stress of the beginning of the generation of dislocations, which ultimately can determine the mechanical strength of the silicon wafer.This paper also considers the mechanism of gas-phase medium impurities and defects gettering with the addition of chlorine-containing compounds. It is shown that at elevated temperatures, due to the interaction of silicon atoms with chlorine in the near-surface region of the plate, it is possible to create vacancies that penetrate the sample volume with some probability. As a result, the case DСv > 0, DCi £ 0 is realized, that leads to a change in the composition of microdefects and their density. The examples of practical application of heat treatment in chlorine-containing atmosphere silicon wafer during application of the oxide film, in the case of the target the need for dissolution of the microdefects and of the withdrawal of fast diffusing impurities from the crystal volume, and to prevent the formation of generation-recombination centers in the manufacturing process of devices and in a nuclear doping silicon.