This facility, housed in a class-100/1000 cleanroom, supports a reasonably complete range of microelectronic processing capabilities. It is run on a user-fee basis, with access to all Brown faculty and outside users, with a couple of local high-tech start-up companies typically maintaining access privileges (requiring insurance and appropriate safety training) with established user fees. In 2009-2010, the facility supported over 100 users from 25 research groups. The facility has a full-time research engineer (Michael Jibitsky) to maintain and upgrade its equipment and train new users, and a faculty director (Rashid Zia).
Current capabilities include:
The PlasmaTherm Model 790 RIE-PECVD system has a computer-controlled single-wafer turbopumped chamber that provides reactive ion etching (RIE) and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) capabilities. RIE is accomplished using fluorine-chemistry gases (CF4, CBrF3, CHF3, etc.) with up to 500 W RF power. PECVD capability provides low-temperature (up to 350 oC) SiO2 and Si3N4 deposition from silane chemistry.
Annealing of wafers (up to 3") by heating in a nitrogen or forming gas atmosphere up to 1100 °C, used for implant activation, anodic bonding, and damage reduction in semiconductor materials.
The Cary 500 spectrophotometer is a research-grade reference UV-visible-NIR instrument with a wavelength range covering 175-3300 nm.
The Cee Model 100 is a fully programmable high-precision spinner, with acceleration from 0 to 30,000 rpm/sec in 1 rpm/sec increments, mostly used for spin-on deposition of photoresist.
The DekTak3 is a new computer-controlled surface profile measuring system, which accurately measures step heights from below 100 A to over 50 µm by moving a diamond-tipped stylus over the surface. Equipped with video camera and surface profile analysis software.
Furnaces for doping Si wafers (up to 2") n or p type using phosphorus (from POCl3) or boron (from BBr3) at high temperatures.
This system deposits thin films of inorganic materials, usually metals, by means of electron beam heating and evaporation inside a high vacuum (cryopumped) chamber. Intense heating can produce deposition rates of up to 1 micron/minute for some materials.
A diffusion-pumped thermal evaporator for metal deposition (primarily aluminum).
The Karl Suss MJB3 UV300 is designed for high-resolution photolithography, with a 350 W mercury lamp and Suss diffraction-reducing exposure optics. The primary exposure wavelengths of 365 or 403 nm lead to roughly 1 µm minimum feature size. For smaller feature sizes, electron-beam lithography is available in the Electron Microscope Facility.
A furnace used to deposit SiO2, Si3N4 or poly-silicon films onto multiple wafers (up to 2"). The deposition is accomplished at 750o C from silane, ammonia, and dichlorosilane at reduced pressure. The dielectric films are of higher quality than those produced by low-temperature PECVD, at the cost of a higher thermal budget.
The Oxford IonFab 300 system uses two Kaufman ion sources to do sputter deposition or Argon etching. It is especially well-suited for fabricating optical devices as it is capable of preparing exceptionally high-quality low-loss dielectric mirrors using HfO2/SiO2 multilayers. It can also be used for metal deposition and for well-controlled etching by Argon bombardment. It is computer-controlled and cryo-pumped, and it can accommodate up to 4" samples with tilt and rotation.
The Trion Technology Minilock II is a computer-controlled turbopumped load-locked single-wafer tool for etching Si and III-V technology materials using chlorine chemistry (Cl2, BCl3, etc.) or Argon.
The PlasmaTherm Model 790 RIE-PECVD system has a computer-controlled single-wafer turbopumped chamber that provides reactive ion etching (RIE) and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) capabilities. RIE is accomplished using fluorine-chemistry gases (CF4, CBrF3, CHF3, etc.) with up to 500 W RF power. PECVD capability provides low-temperature (up to 350 C) SiO2 and Si3N4 deposition from silane chemistry.
A Rudolph Research Corp. ellipseometer measures the refractive index and the thickness of dielectric thin films.
The MRC 8667 is a three-target, magnetron sputtering tool, most recently used for sputter deposition of Nb and indium tin oxide (ITO), but adaptable to other materials.
A Kulicke & Soffa manual wedge bonder fitted with either aluminum or gold wire for bonding finished devices can place bonds on 60 um pads with 120 um centers.
Thermal oxide growth on silicon by a chemical reaction between the silicon and either dry oxygen or water vapor at atmospheric pressure. The typical temperature range for the oxidation of silicon for wafer fabrication 750˚C to 1100˚C. The tubes accommodate multiple 2" wafers.
The Microelectronics Facility has a number of wet chemistry workbenches equipped with fume hoods, to permit the chemical processing (cleaning, wet etching, electroplating, anodization, etc) employed in the fabrication of semiconductor and microelectronic devices.
MRFN.org is supported by the MRSEC Program of the National Science Foundation. Image in the header is courtesy of CRISP MRSEC.
