Defect engineering of Czochralski single-crystal silicon

Modern microelectronic device manufacture requires single-crystal silicon s ubstrates of unprecedented uniformity and purity, As the device feature len gths shrink into the realm of the nanoscale, it is becoming unlikely that t he traditional technique of empirical process design and optimization in bo th crystal growth and wafer processing will suffice for meeting the dynamic ally evolving specifications. These circumstances are creating more demand for a derailed understanding of the physical mechanisms that dictate the ev olution of crystalline silicon microstructure and associated electronic pro perties. This article describes modeling efforts based on the dynamics of n ative point defects in silicon during crystal growth, which are aimed at de veloping comprehensive and robust tools for predicting microdefect distribu tion as a function of operating conditions. These tools are not developed i ndependently of experimental characterization but rather are designed to ta ke advantage of the very detailed information database available for silico n generated by decades of industrial attention. The bulk of the article is focused on two specific microdefect structures observed in Czochralski crys talline silicon, the oxidation-induced stacking fault ring (OSF-ring) and o ctahedral voids; the latter is a current limitation on the quality of comme rcial CZ silicon crystals and the subject of intense research. (C) 2000 Pub lished by Elsevier Science S.A.