UPDATED. 2024-03-28 05:14 (목)
"ALE evolved from curiosity to a usable technology"
"ALE evolved from curiosity to a usable technology"
  • Stan Lee
  • 승인 2019.01.25 15:46
  • 댓글 0
이 기사를 공유합니다

The atomic layer is etched finely as if peeling an onion
SEMI Technology Symposium (STS) Oxford Instrument CTO Lecture

Semiconductor production is a continuation of the process of taking (photolithographing), shaving (etching), washing (cleaning), and covering the material (deposition). Among them, etching is a step of cutting out a thin film put on a circuit pattern drawn by exposure or vapor deposition. As the circuit pattern becomes finer, more and more precise etching becomes necessary, and 'Atomic layer etching (ALE)' is attracting attention as a promising technology.

Mike Cook, Chief Technology Officer at Oxford Instruments, introduced, at the SEMI Technology Symposium (STS), a SeminCon Korea 2019 event, the ALE test results using silicon, silicon dioxide (SiO2), molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), gallium nitride (GaN), and aluminium gallium (AlGaN), and other materials.

Currently, the widely used dry etching method uses plasma. In the plasma state, several ions hit the etch material, cutting off the circuit pattern or thin film as needed. However, the ion itself has an energy of several electron volts (eV), which can cause undesired damage to the circuit pattern. The chemical structure of the etch surface layer may change or may be converted into fine particles by combining with the specific gas used to clean the chamber.

ALE, which has emerged to solve this problem, is a technique in which reactive gas sticks to the surface requiring etching and removes it with a neutral beam. When the reactive gas is combined with the eutectic layer, the neutral beam separates the two materials into atomic units. It creates a physically smooth surface and isotropic, anisotropic etch as well as conventional dry etch. The etch rate can be adjusted in the desired direction.

A circuit pattern that has finished ALE work uniformly at 110 nano depth.
A circuit pattern that has finished ALE work uniformly at 110 nano depth.

CTO Cook noted that in 1996, ALE was possible through Si and GaAs, but stressed that the ability to freely adjust the output while lowering the energy of limited etch materials and neutral beams to less than 50 eV is necessary. At present, Oxford Instruments has created the ALE process using Si, MoS2, AlGaN, and GaN. Chlorine (Cl2) and argon (Ar) were used as reactive gases. The target materials are Si and SiO2.

As a result of the test, it etched 2 to 7 angstroms (0.2 to 0.7 nanometers) per cycle. Cook explained that up to 70 angstroms per minute is possible. In the 3D Si of 25 nanosize, the curve to a depth of 110 nanometers was created. MoS2 removed layers as needed within 40 cycles. What about AlGaN? AlGaN with a thickness of 20~30 nm was etched at 1.4 nm per cycle with uniformity of ± 5% (based on a 200 mm wafer). It was very uniform and accurate to the desired depth.

There are some challenges to overcome. 300mm wafer support and neutral beam output should be fine-tuned. "With the use of a variety of materials away from the laboratory environment, ALE is transitioning to a technology that can be used," said CTO Cook. "With the Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) on the market, it will be a way to overcome difficulties in the production of semiconductor below 10 nm,” he added.

Oxford Instrument ALE Equipment
Oxford Instrument ALE Equipment

 


댓글삭제
삭제한 댓글은 다시 복구할 수 없습니다.
그래도 삭제하시겠습니까?
댓글 0
댓글쓰기
계정을 선택하시면 로그인·계정인증을 통해
댓글을 남기실 수 있습니다.

  • 515, Nonhyeon-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea 4F, Ahsung Bldg.
  • 대표전화 : 82-2-2658-4707
  • 팩스 : 82-2-2659-4707
  • 청소년보호책임자 : Stan LEE
  • 법인명 : The Elec Inc.
  • 제호 : THE ELEC, Korea Electronics Industry Media
  • 등록번호 : 서울, 아05435
  • 등록일 : 2018-10-15
  • 발행일 : 2018-10-15
  • 발행인 : JY HAN
  • 편집인 : JY HAN
  • THE ELEC, Korea Electronics Industry Media Prohibiting unauthorized duplication,publishing,modification and distribution the material on this Site for any purpose.
  • Copyright © 2024 THE ELEC, Korea Electronics Industry Media. All rights reserved. mail to powerusr@thelec.kr
ND소프트