Evaluation of Critical Surface Cleanliness by Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy

Surfaces of a wide variety of IC materials, from raw silicon wafers to package piece parts, must be ultra-clean prior to key manufacturing steps to assure reliable performance of the finished devices. Knowledge of surface cleanliness is essential for optimum process design. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) is utilized to define levels of impurities on critical surfaces at various stages of device manufacture.