Reactions on Si(100) and Chemical Oxide Surfaces in Dissolved-Oxygen Controlled Deionized Water

This paper discusses the characteristics of Si and chemical oxide surfaces rinsed with deionized (DI) water with dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration ranging from 0.08 ppm to 2.0 ppm, controlled by N 2 bubbling, at temperatures ranging from 23°C to 80°C. From the aspect of electrochemistry, it is shown that the surface condition is determined by the balance of the simple reactions of oxidation and oxide etching, which proceed spontaneously and simultaneously on Si and chemical oxide surfaces. When the DO controlled DI water is used for rinsing after diluted HF (DHF) dipping before gate oxidation, the breakdown characteristics show no differences for different DI water conditions. Such surface sensitive control using DO controlled DI water, however, is thought to have other potential applications to surface treatment processes.