Water-assisted repair of plasma-induced damage in the silicon/silicon-dioxide system

We have investigated the effects of pouring deionized water onto a silicon (Si)/silicon-dioxide (SiO2) system wafer to repair plasma-induced damage, W e found that the distribution of repair effectiveness across; the wafer was not uniform but depended strongly on both the pouring method and where on the wafer the water was poured. When the water was poured onto a rotating p lasma-damaged wafer, the damage was most effectively repaired in the areas onto which the water was poured, and the effect decreased sharply with incr easing distance from these areas. We propose a simplified hypothesis: some of the H+ ions produced by the friction between the water and the SiO2 migr ate to the Si-SiO2 interface and passivate the dangling bonds (which are re lated to plasma damage) at the interface. (C) 2000 American Vacuum Society. [S0734-211X(00)03303-5].