Corning Incorporated

Soitec

S.o.i.tec Silicon on Insulator Technologies

Alex Usenko

Jeffrey Scott Cites

James Gregory Couillard

Richard Orr Maschmeyer

Michael John Moore

Sarko Cherekdjian

Nadia Ben Mohamed

Daniel Delprat

Ta Ko Chuang

Ta-Ko Chuang

A process for preparing a surface of a material that is not bondable to make it bondable to the surface of another material. A non-bondable surface of a semiconductor wafer is treated with oxygen plasma to oxidize the surface of the wafer and make the surface smoother, hydrophilic and bondable to the surface of another substrate, such as a glass substrate. The semiconductor wafer may have a barrier layer thereon formed of a material, such as SixNy or SiNxOy that is not bondable to another substrate, such as a glass substrate. In which case, the oxygen plasma treatment converts the surface of the barrier layer to oxide, such as SiO2, smoothing the surface and making the surface hydrophilic and bondable to the surface of another substrate, such as a glass substrate. The converted oxide layer may be stripped from the barrier layer or semiconductor wafer with an acid, in order to remove contamination on the surface of the barrier layer or semiconductor wafer, the stripped surface may undergo a second oxygen plasma treatment to further smooth the surface, and make the surface hydrophilic and bondable to the surface of another substrate.

Oxygen plasma conversion process for preparing a surface for bonding

A process of making semiconductor-on-glass substrates having a relatively stiff (e.g. relatively high Young's modulus of 125 or higher) stiffening layer between the silicon film and the glass in an ion implantation thin film transfer process by depositing a stiffening layer or layers on one of the donor wafer or the glass substrate in order to eliminate the canyons and pin holes that otherwise form in the surface of the transferred silicon film during the thin film transfer process. The new stiffening layer may be formed of a material, such as silicon nitride, that also serves as an efficient barrier against penetration of sodium and other harmful impurities from the glass substrate into the silicon film.

Process of making semiconductor on glass substrates with a stiffening layer

A semiconductor-on-glass substrate having a relatively stiff (e.g. relatively high Young's modulus of 125 or higher) stiffening layer or layers placed between the silicon film and the glass in order to eliminate the canyons and pin holes that otherwise form in the surface of the transferred silicon film during the ion implantation thin film transfer process. The new stiffening layer may be formed of a material, such as silicon nitride, that also serves as an efficient barrier against penetration of sodium and other harmful impurities from the glass substrate into the silicon film.

Semiconductor on glass substrate with stiffening layer and process of making the same

Methods and apparatus provide for forming a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) structure, including subjecting a implantation surface of a donor semiconductor wafer to an ion implantation step to create a weakened slice in cross-section defining an exfoliation layer of the donor semiconductor wafer; and subjecting the donor semiconductor wafer to a spatial variation step, either before, during or after the ion implantation step, such that at least one parameter of the weakened slice varies spatially across the weakened slice in at least one of X- and Y- axial directions.

Methods and apparatus for producing semiconductor on insulator structures using directed exfoliation

Methods and apparatus provide for forming a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) structure, including subjecting a implantation surface of a donor semiconductor wafer to an ion implantation step to create a weakened slice in cross-section defining an exfoliation layer of the donor semiconductor wafer; and subjecting the donor semiconductor wafer to a spatial variation step, either before, during or after the ion implantation step, such that at least one parameter of the weakened slice varies spatially across the weakened slice in at least one of X- and Y-axial directions.

Methods and apparatus provide for forming a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) structure, including subjecting a implantation surface of a donor semiconductor wafer to an ion implantation step to create a weakened slice in cross-section defining an exfoliation layer of the donor semiconductor wafer; and subjecting the donor semiconductor wafer to a spatial variation step, either before, during or after the ion implantation step, such that at least one parameter of the weakened slice varies spatially across the weakened slice in at least one of X-and Y-axial directions.

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Painted Post, NY, United States of America

Alex Usenko