Integrated Materials, Incorporated

Laurence D Delaney

James E Boyle

Raanan Y Zehavi

Robert L Davis

A method of joining two silicon members and the bonded assembly in which the members are assembled to place them into alignment across a seam. Silicon derived from silicon powder is plasma sprayed across the seam and forms a silicon coating that bonds to the silicon members on each side of the seam to thereby bond together the members. The plasma sprayed silicon may seal an underlying bond of spin-on glass or may act as the primary bond, in which case through mortise holes are preferred so that two layers of silicon are plasma sprayed on opposing ends of the mortise holes. A silicon wafer tower or boat may be the final product. The method may be used to form a ring or a tube from segments or staves arranged in a circle. Plasma spraying silicon may repair a crack or chip formed in a silicon member.

Silicon parts joined by a silicon layer preferably plasma sprayed

Plasma spraying for joining silicon parts

A process for hydrogen annealing silicon wafers that have been cut from an ingot and polished on both sides, thereby removing crystal originated pits (COPs) in their surface. The wafers are then stacked in a tower having at least support surfaces made from virgin polysilicon, that is, polysilicon form by chemical vapor deposition, preferably from monosilane. The tower may include four virgin polysilicon legs have support teeth slotted at inclined angles along the legs and fixed at their opposed ends to bases. The wafers so supported on the virgin polysilicon towers are annealed in a hydrogen ambient at 1250&#xb0; C. for 12 hours.

Silicon fixture supporting silicon wafers during high temperature processing

A process for hydrogen annealing silicon wafers that have been cut from an ingot and polished on both sides, thereby removing crystal originated pits (COPs) in their surface. The wafers are then stacked in a tower having at least support surfaces made from virgin polysilicon, that is, polysilicon form by chemical vapor deposition, preferably from monosilane. The tower may include four virgin polysilicon legs have support teeth slotted along the legs and fixed at their opposed ends to bases. The wafers are supported at four equally distributed points at 0.707 of the wafer radius. The wafers so supported on the virgin polysilicon towers are annealed in a hydrogen ambient at 1250&deg; C. for 12 hours.

High temperature hydrogen anneal of silicon wafers supported on a silicon fixture

A method of fabricating parts of silicon, preferably virgin polysilicon formed by chemical vapor deposition of silane, and assembling them into a complex structure, such as a silicon tower or boat for removably supporting a plurality of silicon wafers during thermal processing. The virgin polysilicon is annealed to above 1025&deg; C. before it is machined into a predetermined shape. After machining, the silicon parts are annealed in an oxygen ambient. The machined parts are then assembled and joined together followed by another anneal of the assembled structure. A preferred embodiment of the tower includes four legs secured on their ends to two bases. A plurality of slots are cut in the legs allowing slidable insertion of the wafers and support for them. The bases may be either virgin poly or monocrystalline silicon and be either integral or composed of multiple parts.

Method of machining silicon

A method of fabricating the parts and assembling them into a complex structure, such as a silicon tower or boat for removably supporting a plurality of silicon wafers during thermal processing. A preferred embodiment of the tower includes four legs secured on their ends to two bases. A plurality of slots are cut in the legs allowing slidable insertion of the wafers and support for them. The legs preferably have a rounded wedge shape with a curved front surface of small radius cut with the slots and a back surface that is either flat or curved with a substantially larger radius. Preferably, the legs are machined from virgin polysilicon formed by chemical vapor deposition from silane. The bases may be either virgin poly or monocrystalline silicon and be either integral or composed of multiple parts. Virgin polysilicon is preferably annealed to above 1025&deg; C. before machining. Silicon parts may be joined by applying a spin-on glass between the parts and annealing the assembly. After assembly, the surface of a tower is subjected to sub-surface working.

Method of fabricating silicon structures including fixtures for supporting wafers

A silicon tower or boat for removably supporting a plurality of silicon wafers during thermal processing. A preferred embodiment of the tower includes four legs secured on their ends to two bases. A plurality of slots are cut in the legs allowing slidable insertion of the wafers and support for them. The legs preferably have a rounded wedge shape with a curved front surface of small radius cut with the slots and a back surface that is either flat or curved with a substantially larger radius. Preferably, the legs are machined from virgin polysilicon formed by chemical vapor deposition from silane. The bases may be either virgin poly or monocrystalline silicon and be either integral or composed of multiple parts. Virgin polysilicon is preferably annealed to above 1025&deg; C. before machining. Silicon parts may be joined by applying a spin-on glass between the parts and annealing the assembly. After assembly, the surface of a tower is subjected to sub-surface working.

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Whitefish, MT, United States of America

Laurence D Delaney