Hydrophobic Films Surface Preparation And Its Impact On Wet Cleaning

The cleaning of hydrophobic films is a key challenge for yield. Such films are prone to drying marks formation during aqueous cleaning steps. In the present work, we study how surface preparation can break non-polar bonds, resulting in a hydrophilic surface. Several treatments (ultraviolet, Standard Clean 1 and ozonated water) and materials (amorphous carbon, silicon carbon nitride) have been studied. A specific work on Silicon carbon nitride surface modification with ozonated water has been initiated with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We have evaluated the interest that such step has prior to aqueous wafer cleaning and the possible consequences on electrical properties and surface energy. Further investigations will be required to evaluate the impact and interest of such a step on microelectronic process integration.