SEMICONDUCTOR BOND RUPTURE PHENOMENA AND SURFACE-PROPERTIES

The complexities of semiconductor bond rupture processes and cleavage surfaces are becoming clarified by recent studies. The high energies r eleased during bond breaking cause a variety of phenomena, including g eneration of voltages and currents, and emission of light of various w avelengths and durations. Electrical effects during cleavage of Si inc lude generation of voltage pulses up to about 400 mV, with currents up to about 5 mA. If voltages are applied during cleavage, the duration of the luminescence is affected in a systematic way. Low temperature c leavage experiments show that the surface is at an elevated temperatur e for a short period. There is persistent evidence for the finding fir st reported many years ago, that crack healing can take place, which i s incompatible with cleaved surface structure models featuring irrever sible changes.