Memc Electronic Materials, Inc.

Saeed Pirooz

Larry W Shive

A gettering agent for gettering metals from a solution. The gettering agent has a surface layer of SiO.sub.2 which is greater than 15 angstroms in thickness.

Gettering agent

Process for heat-treating a silicon wafer which includes the steps of contacting the surface of the silicon wafer with an aqueous solution containing hydrofluoric acid to remove metals from the wafer surface, contacting the hydrofluoric acid treated wafers with ozonated water to grow a hydrophilic oxide layer on the surface of the silicon wafer, and heating the ozonated water treated wafers to a temperature of at least about 300.degree. C. for a duration of at least about 1 second. The concentration of each of iron, chromium, calcium, titanium, cobalt, manganese, zinc and vanadium, on the surface of the silicon wafer at the initiation of the heating being less than 1.times.10.sup.9 atoms/cm.sup.2.

Pre-thermal treatment cleaning process

A process and a gettering agent for gettering metals from a solution. In the process, the solution is contacted with a gettering agent having a surface layer of SiO.sub.2, the layer of SiO.sub.2 preferably being greater than 15 angstroms in thickness.

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St. Louis, MO, United States of America

Saeed Pirooz