EE224A Introduction to

Micro/Nanodevices
Microfabrication
微纳器件工艺基础
Dr. Hao Ren 任豪
Office: SIST Bldg 3-328
[email protected]

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 1

 Lecture 14 Thermal Processing: Diffusion

• Introduce:
− Introduce solid-state diffusion and its mechanisms
− Demonstrate the Arrhenius relationship of diffusion
− Show how to calculate diffusion for many elements
under many conditions (e.g., temp, time, element, etc.)
− Describe Constant-Source Diffusion in detail
− Describe Constant-Dose Diffusion in detail
− Introduce concepts of junction depth, dose, etc.
− Explain the significance of a “thermal budget”
− Discuss sheet resistance and its measurement

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 2

What is Diffusion?

• Thermally Driven Process

− statistical net motion of regions of high concentration to
low concentration
• Key Mechanism in Deposition Processes
− introducing impurities to silicon
− thermal oxidation of silicon
− chemical vapor deposition
• Used Extensively in IC and MEMS Fabrication
− control electrical properties of silicon
➢ resistors, diodes, BJTs, MOSFETs, …
− control chemical/mechanical properties
➢ p+ etch stop (greatly slows down KOH and EDP etch)
➢ piezoresistors (change in stress = change in resistance)
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 Dopant Species: P-Type, N-Type

• Typical Dopants (gives or takes an e-)

− Doping levels: 1015 to 1020 atoms/cm3
➢ Silicon has 5.2x1022 atoms/cm3
− Donor Atoms (n-type) P, As, …
− Acceptor Atoms (p-type) B, Ga, Al
− Unwanted Dopants Au, Fe, Cu, Ni, …
➢ can ruin solid-state electronic devices
➢ fast diffusers (high diffusivity)

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 4

 Types of Diffusion

• 3 types based on the source

➢ Solid-State Diffusion

➢ Liquid-State Diffusion

➢ Gas-State Diffusion

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 5

 What is Solid-State Diffusion?
• Random thermally activated movement of atoms
within a solid material
• A method of “deposition” by modifying the atomic
composition of materials
• controlled “contamination”
• typically only in the surface of bulk materials
(SCS) but completely through most thin films
polysilicon
• high temperature process (700 to 1200ºC)
• used extensively in commercial ICs and MEMS

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 6

 Solid-State Diffusion
• Thermal Motion of Atoms in a Solid (Lattice)

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 7

 Fick’s 1st Law of Diffusion
(Concentration Gradient Driven Flux)
• Flux (atoms/cm2·sec)
− diffusivity D, flux J
− negative slope cancels with minus sign
and yields a positive flux
− dopant concentration N in atoms/cm3

• Diffusion Coefficient (cm2/sec)

− strong function of temperature
− Arrhenius relationship
− Activation Energy (Ea)
− Boltzmann’s constant (k = 1.38x10-23 J/K)

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 8

 Fick’s 2nd Law of Diffusion
(Time Dependence of Concentration and Flux)

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 9

 Diffusion Coefficients

Element D0(cm2/sec) Ea(eV)

B 10.5 3.69
Al 8.00 3.47
Ga 3.60 3.51
In 16.5 3.90
P 10.5 3.69
As 0.32 3.56
Sb 5.60 3.95

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 10

 Fast Diffusers-Typically Undesirable

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 Solving the Diffusion Equations

• Boundary Conditions
−Constant Source or Supply of Dopants
➢infinite supply of dopants is provided at the surface
to insure that the concentration of dopants at the
surface is held constant
➢ 𝑁 𝑥 = 0, 𝑡 = 𝑁0
➢Typical situation with a solid source on the substrate
−Constant Dose or Fixed Number of Dopants
➢fixed (finite) amount of dopants in the substrate at all
times
➢ ‫𝑥 𝑁 ׬‬, 𝑡 ∙ 𝑑𝑥 = 𝑄 (dose) is constant
➢Typical situation after an implant or short and
shallow pre-diffusion
EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 12
 Case #1: Constant Source
Concentration at Surface is Fixed
• Solving Fick’s 2nd Law with the boundary
condition: 𝑁 𝑥 = 0, 𝑡 = 𝑁0
• Constant Source:
− infinite supply of dopants is provided at the surface to
insure that the concentration of dopants at the surface
is held constant
− yields:
𝑥
−𝑁 𝑥, 𝑡 = 𝑁0 ∙ 𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑐
2 𝐷∙𝑡
• erfc is the Complementary Error Function
− comes from probability and statistics
− derived by integrating the normal probability function

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 13

 What is the erfc?

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 14

 Case #1: Constant Source (continued)
Concentration at Surface is Fixed

• Plot on a semi-log graph

• Longer time or higher diffusivity D results in a
deeper diffusion
EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 15
 What Fixes the Surface Concentration
Solid Solubility = No

• Maximum concentration without precipitation is

the solid solubility
− function of temperature
− function of dopant

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 16

 Total Dose (Q)

• Total Dose is simply the integral of the distribution

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 17

 Junction Depth (xj)

• Junction Depth is simply the intersection of the

profile N(x,t) with the background concentration
NB, thus where N(x,t) = NB
EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 18
 Junction Depth (xj)

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 19

 Case #2: Constant Dose
Total Number of Dopants is Fixed
• Starting with a mathematical impulse function of
dopants (nonphysical, but convenient
mathematically):

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 20

 Case #1: Constant Dose
Total Number of Dopants is Fixed

N S 1/ 2
x j = 2 Dt (ln )
NB

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 21

 Diffusion of Buried Dopants

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 Impurity Diffusion process

1）Cleaning 4）Etching SiO2

2）Oxidation
5）Remove PR

3）Impurity mask
6）Cleaning

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 23

 Impurity Diffusion process

7）Pre-depo

8）Top oxidation

9）Redistribution

10）Remove
impurity oxide
EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 24
 Oxide-Enhanced Diffusion process

• Result：P、B、As等在氧化气氛中扩散增强。
Si-SiO2界面产生的大量间隙Si与替位B、P等相互作用

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 25

 2D and 3D Diffusion

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 Impact from 3D diffusion
• Lateral diffusion
− Impact design layout
− Less compact
− Effective gate length of MOS is reduce
− Lateral penetration effect

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 Sources of Dopants: Gas

• Gas Sources: HAZAROUDS!!!

− B2H6 – Diborane
− PH3 – Phosphine
− AsH3 – Arsine
• Easy to operate compared to liquid source
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 Sources of Dopants
• Solid
• Spin-On Glasses
− has a volatile solve just like PR
• Previously Deposited Films
− deposit at low temp and drive in at high temperatures
(e.g., oxides, polysilicon)

• Liquid
• Compound in liquid phase
− POCl3, PCl3, AsCl3 etc
− Carried into furnace by N2 gas
− Good uniformity
EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 29
 Thermal Budget

• High-temperature process after a diffusion

will cause a further diffusion to occur
−D·t product just adds from run-to-run
Net (D·t)total:

Di – varies due to steps done at

different temperatures
• Thermal Budget
−a process often has a maximum total D·t
without undesirable events occurring
−excessive diffusion
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 Sheet Resistance

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 31

 Sheet Resistance

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 32

 Sheet Resistance Measurement

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 33

 P+ Etch Stop

• p+ etch stops require high concentrations

• p+ etch stops are highly conductive

EE224A Intro to Micro/Nanodevices Microfabrication © Tao Wu & Hao Ren 34

 Take-Home Messages

• Solid-state diffusion occurs in several ways

• Diffusion has an Arrhenius relationship
− Understand what activation energy means
• Elements diffuse at different rates
− Some undesirable elements diffuse quickly
• Know the different types of diffusion (Constant
Source, Constant Dose)
− Know the equations and when to use them
− Know error functions, junction depth, dose, etc…
• Thermal budget is a critical concept, know it!
• Understand sheet resistance and Irvin’s Curves

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