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Ic Fabrication Steps

The document outlines the basic fabrication processes for integrated circuits which are wafer preparation, oxidation, diffusion, ion implantation, chemical vapor deposition, photolithography, metallization, and packaging. Each step is described in 1-2 paragraphs.

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R Tharunish
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4K views9 pages

Ic Fabrication Steps

The document outlines the basic fabrication processes for integrated circuits which are wafer preparation, oxidation, diffusion, ion implantation, chemical vapor deposition, photolithography, metallization, and packaging. Each step is described in 1-2 paragraphs.

Uploaded by

R Tharunish
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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IC Fabrication Steps

The basic fabrication processes of the Integrated Circuits are as follows:


• Wafer Preparation
• Oxidation
• Diffusion
• Ion Implantation
• Chemical-Vapor Deposition
• Photolithography
• Metallization
• Packaging
Wafer Preparation

• A wafer is a thin material used for making various Integrated circuits and transistors.

• Wafer acts as a base for such devices

• The material of a wafer is the semiconductor, especially crystalline silicon.

• The wafer preparation is the first step for IC fabrication.

• It involves cutting, shaping, and polishing the wafer material to make it suitable for
further fabrication.
Oxidation
• Oxidation is the process of adding oxygen.

• In a semiconductor, the oxygen and the silicon react to form silicon dioxide.

• The oxidation is carried out in furnaces at high temperatures up to 1250 degrees Celsius.

• Oxidation is classified as wet oxidation or dry oxidation. Both processes are widely used
and have their own advantages and disadvantages.

• Wet oxidation is fast, while dry oxidation has good electrical properties.

• The oxidation process is one of the essential parts of the IC fabrication process.
Diffusion
• Diffusion is a process of adding impurity atoms from a region with high concentration to a region of low
concentration.

• The dopants or impurity atoms are added to the silicon (semiconductor material), which changes its resistivity.

• The process of diffusion is highly dependent on the temperature. It is carried out in high-temperature furnaces
between 1000 degrees Celsius and 1200 degrees Celsius.

• The depth and width of the impurities depend on the temperature range and the timings. The high doping
concentration improves the conductivity of a metal.

• The dopants can be of any state, solid, liquid, or gas. The preferred dopants are pentavalent impurities or n-
type, such as antimony, phosphorous pentoxide, and arsine (gas). The trivalent impurities or p-type
are gallium, indium, boron, etc.
Ion Implantation
• The ion implantation is a process of accelerating ions from the element to the solid target. The accelerated ions
on the solid can change its properties.

• The ions are applied at a low temperature and high energy.

• The low temperature allows it to work at room temperature. But, the excess energy can also damage the crystal
structure of the solid.

• Ion implantation introduces impurity atoms in the crystal (semiconductor material).


• The accelerated atom gets embedded when it strikes the surface of the crystal.
• The energy and accelerating field voltage determine the depth of the penetration of the ions.
• The quantity of dopants can be controlled by adjusting the amount of ion concentration.
Hence, ion implantation is more accurate due to the controlled current, voltage, and energy.
Chemical-Vapor Deposition
• CVD or Chemical Vapor deposition is used to produce high-quality solid materials.

• It produces thin films in the semiconductor industry.

• The process is carried out at a pressure below the atmospheric pressure, also known as vacuum deposition. The
chemicals and vapors react to form solids on the surface of a substrate.

• The protective layers on the substrate, such as silicon dioxide, polysilicon, and silicon nitride, are deposited
using the CVD process.

• For example,

The reaction of silane gas, a molecule of silicon atom, with the oxygen on the surface of the silicon wafer results
in the formation of SiO2 or silicon dioxide.
Photolithography
• Photolithography is also known as optical lithography.

• It is used to pattern thin films on the substrate, such as silicon wafers.

• It protects certain areas during successive fabrication processes (deposition, ion implantation, etc.).

• The types of light used include UV light, X-rays, and extreme UV that emits at different frequencies.

• The most used type of light to produce the film is Ultra-Violet light.

• The silicon wafer or the substrate is first coated with a photoresist.

• On the photoresist layer, a mask pattern with the help of photolithography is applied to the silicon wafer.

• The exposed areas of the wafer become soft and can be removed. It creates a pattern on the wafer. The
wavelength of each type of light determines the feature size impressed on the photoresist.
Metallization
• Metallization is defined as the process of coating a metal layer on the metallic surface or non-metallic
surface.

• The coating can be of aluminum, zinc, or silver. The metal coating in CMOS fabrication is aluminum,
which protects the surface from external environmental factors, as dust, air, water, etc.

• Metallization is also used to interconnect various components that form an Integrated circuit.

• The components can be resistors, capacitors, transistors, relays, etc.


Packaging
• Packaging is the last stage of the IC fabrication process.

• The finished silicon wafer or chips of various sizes with number of small components are tested electrically
to recheck their working.

• The testing is performed using an automatic probing station.

• It is a cost effective testing machine that includes microwave and radio-frequency testing.

• The default circuits are separated from all the circuits. The good circuits are sent for packaging or headers.

• Packaging also assembles the ICs with other devices.

• IC is a component of a device. The external connections with the IC are packed together to form a device.

• We can also say that packaging is a connection between the manufacturing and end use of a device.

• It makes a product suitable for its end use.

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