Advanced Micro Devices Corporation

Bruce L Pickelsimer

Damon K DeBusk

Hsingya Arthur Wang

Shyam G Garg

Tim Z Hossain

Mohamed B Bandali

Bandali B Mohamed

A system and method are presented for determining the thickness and elemental composition of a layer within a measurement sample in an easy and inexpensive manner. An embodiment of the method includes impinging an incident x-ray beam into an exposed surface of a measurement sample containing one or more layers. The incident x-ray beam passes through the sample and may refract depending on the composition of the layers to produce a transmitted x-ray beam. The intensity and the angle of refraction of the transmitted x-ray beam may then be measured. These measurements may be compared to the results of a calibration sample that has been prepared with a known thickness and composition relative to the layer characteristics of the sample. The intensity of the transmitted x-ray beam is a function of the thickness of the layer; while the angle of refraction is a function of the elemental composition of the layer. An embodiment of the system includes an x-ray source to produce an incident x-ray beam and a detector to collect a transmitted x-ray beam. The detector is preferably positioned on the side opposite of the exposed surface of the sample on which the incident x-ray beam is impinged. In an alternative embodiment, the system may include a stage on which to place the measurement sample. The process described herein may be used for semiconductor wafers on which a thin film has been applied. The system may be suitable for use in a semiconductor fabrication environment, allowing increased production efficiency and improved process control. Furthermore, thin films of various compositions and thicknesses may be measured, including those of low and high atomic numbers.

System and method for analyzing layers using x-ray transmission

The present method and apparatus provides a thin layer of oxynitride over a device including a patterned metal layer, application of a planarizing SOG layer over the thin oxynitride layer, removal of thin portions of the SOG layer by etching to expose portions of the thin oxynitride layer, and application of a thick oxynitride layer to form a strong bond with the thin oxynitride layer. A thin nitride layer, transparent to UV light, may then be applied to the resulting structure prior to application of plastic packaging material.

Method of fabricating topside structure of a semiconductor device

A method of manufacturing a silicon substrate which optimizes extrinsic gettering during semiconductor fabrication is provided in which phosphorous ions are diffused into the backside surface of a silicon substrate during wafer slice manufacture. Forming gettering sites at the backside surface prior to gate polysilicon deposition, extrinsic gettering is optimized. Initially, both the frontside and backside surfaces of a silicon substrate are subjected to dopant materials. Thereafter, at least one thin film is formed on both the frontside and backside surfaces. The thin films are then removed from the frontside surface along with a layer of the silicon substrate immediately below the frontside surface to a depth of about 10.0 .mu.m. The final polishing step of a typical silicon wafer manufacturing process removes a layer of silicon to a depth of about 10.0 .mu.m at the frontside surface of the silicon wafer, thus allowing the wafer slice material manufacturing method of the present invention to be easily be incorporated into a standard silicon wafer manufacturing process. It is estimated that at least 99 percent of the dopants introduced into the frontside surface are removed with the upper 10.0 .mu.m of silicon. The thin films formed on the backside surface of the silicon substrate remain, preventing outgassing of dopant impurities during subsequent thermal processing steps. A polysilicon thin film formed over the backside surface may also provide an additional source of extrinsic gettering.

Manufacturing method for wafer slice starting material to optimize

A method for the formation of active devices upon and within exposed surfaces of both sides of a silicon wafer is presented. A dual-sided silicon wafer is provided having a first surface and an opposed second surface prepared similarly to achieve surfaces suitable for fabricating semiconductor devices. The method advantageously integrates the ability to preform wafer processing operations on both exposed surfaces separately or simultaneously. Wafer processing operations are layering, patterning, doping, and heat treatment. The processing sequence is complete when a doped region and a patterened interconnect line electrically coupled thereto (i.e., minimal integrated circuits) are formed upon and within both surfaces of the dual-sided silicon wafer. A wafer handling system and processing station for dual-sided silicon wafers are described. In addition, a technique of applying a protective layer over one surface of a dual-sided silicon wafer is also described. Once a protective layer has been applied over one surface of a dual-sided silicon wafer, one or more wafer processing operations may be carried out upon the opposed surface using common wafer processing equipment without damaging the structures formed upon and within the surface covered with the protective layer. The protective layer may later be stripped away in order to gain access to the covered surface for further processing.

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Pflugerville, TX, United States of America

Bruce L Pickelsimer