222 research outputs found

    Real Time Measurement of Epilayer Strain Using a Simplified Wafer Curvature Technique

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    We describe a technique for measuring thin film stress using wafer curvature that is robust, compact, easy to setup, and sufficiently sensitive to serve as a routine diagnostic of semiconductor epilayer strain in real time during MBE or CVD growth. We demonstrate, using growth of SiGe alloys on Si, that the critical thickness for misfit dislocation can clearly be resolved, and that the subsequent strain relaxation kinetics during growth or post-growth annealing are readily obtained

    Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) to Mitigate Tin Whisker Growth and Corrosion Issues on Printed Circuit Board Assemblies

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    This paper presents the results of a research program set up to evaluate atomic layer deposition (ALD) conformal coatings as a method of mitigating the growth of tin whiskers from printed circuit board assemblies. The effect of ALD coating process variables on the ability of the coating to mitigate whisker growth were evaluated. Scanning electron microscopy and optical microscopy were used to evaluate both the size and distribution of tin whiskers and the coating/whisker interactions. Results show that the ALD process can achieve significant reductions in whisker growth and thus offers considerable potential as a reworkable whisker mitigation strategy. The effect of ALD layer thickness on whisker formation was also investigated. Studies indicate that thermal exposure during ALD processing may contribute significantly to the observed whisker mitigation

    Extensions of the Stoney formula for substrate curvature to configurations with thin substrates or large deformations

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    Two main assumptions which underlie the Stoney formula relating substrate curvature to mis-match strain in a bonded thin film are that the film is very thin compared to the substrate, and the deformations are infinitesimally small. Expressions for the curvature-strain relastionship are derived for cases in which thses assumptions are relaxed, thereby providing a biasis for interpretation of experimental observations for a broader class of film-substrate configurations

    Decay of isolated surface features driven by the Gibbs-Thomson effect in analytic model and simulation

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    A theory based on the thermodynamic Gibbs-Thomson relation is presented which provides the framework for understanding the time evolution of isolated nanoscale features (i.e., islands and pits) on surfaces. Two limiting cases are predicted, in which either diffusion or interface transfer is the limiting process. These cases correspond to similar regimes considered in previous works addressing the Ostwald ripening of ensembles of features. A third possible limiting case is noted for the special geometry of "stacked" islands. In these limiting cases, isolated features are predicted to decay in size with a power law scaling in time: A is proportional to (t0-t)^n, where A is the area of the feature, t0 is the time at which the feature disappears, and n=2/3 or 1. The constant of proportionality is related to parameters describing both the kinetic and equilibrium properties of the surface. A continuous time Monte Carlo simulation is used to test the application of this theory to generic surfaces with atomic scale features. A new method is described to obtain macroscopic kinetic parameters describing interfaces in such simulations. Simulation and analytic theory are compared directly, using measurements of the simulation to determine the constants of the analytic theory. Agreement between the two is very good over a range of surface parameters, suggesting that the analytic theory properly captures the necessary physics. It is anticipated that the simulation will be useful in modeling complex surface geometries often seen in experiments on physical surfaces, for which application of the analytic model is not straightforward.Comment: RevTeX (with .bbl file), 25 pages, 7 figures from 9 Postscript files embedded using epsf. Submitted to Phys. Rev. B A few minor changes made on 9/24/9

    Dynamic Scaling of Ion-Sputtered Surfaces

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    We derive a stochastic nonlinear equation to describe the evolution and scaling properties of surfaces eroded by ion bombardment. The coefficients appearing in the equation can be calculated explicitly in terms of the physical parameters characterizing the sputtering process. We find that transitions may take place between various scaling behaviors when experimental parameters such as the angle of incidence of the incoming ions or their average penetration depth, are varied.Comment: 13 pages, Revtex, 2 figure
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