Download or read book Reliability of the Scanning Capacitance Microscopy and Spectroscopy for the Nanoscale Characterization of Semiconductors and Dielectrics written by Octavian Ligor and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work was devoted to the experimental study of the scanning capacitance microscopy (SCM) and spectroscopy (SCS) for the mapping of the dopants in the semiconductor structures and for the characterization of thin oxides. SCM has appeared to be a very powerful technique for doping mapping as long as qualitative images are needed, for example in order to check whether fabrication steps like implantations have been correctly operated during the fabrication of devices (presence or absence of doping of a given type in a region where it should be present). When quantitativity is needed, the only way of performing a calibration of SCM images for dopant mapping seems to grow exactly the same oxide on two different samples, one being a calibration sample from which a semi-calibration curve associating doping levels and SCM signal levels will be measured and applied to the unknown sample (semi-calibration). We have shown the capabilities of SCM for dopant mapping using a series of experimental situations and test samples covering almost all frequently encountered structures in the industry of silicon microelectronics : doping staircases of p-type and n-type structures, quantum wells and p-n junctions. Qualitative images have been obtained for a wide range of doping levels between 2.e+15 at.cm-3 to 5.e+19 at.cm-3. SCM is able to detect quantum wells of ~ 7 nm width. SCM is also able to differentiate between dopants of different type (p-type or n-type). All these results confirm the usefulness of SCM as a qualitative imaging technique. We have studied the experimental parameters playing a role in the interpretation and reproducibility of SCM signal: stray light, stray capacitance, the tip-sample contact, the influence of strong electrical fields, the sample's topography, the quality and the properties of the top oxide. We have proposed solutions for eliminating all these parasitic factors and for rendering the SCM measurements reproducible and quantitative.