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Porosity Determinations in Buried and Surface Layers of Porous Silicon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 February 2011

Terry R. Guilinger ,
Michael J. Kelly  and
Sylvia S. Tsao
Terry R. Guilinger
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185
Michael J. Kelly
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185
Sylvia S. Tsao
Affiliation:
Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185
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Abstract

Gravimetric techniques offer a convenient and accurate method of determining surface layer porosity in both n- and p-type porous silicon (PS). Porosity of the PS affects its volume expansion on oxidation and the insulating properties of the resulting oxide. Optimal porosity (ca. 55%) yields fully dense, insulating oxides with minimal expansion-induced stresses. Two factors affect the porosity: chemical dissolution of PS by the anodization electrolyte, and oxidation of the PS to produce a native oxide on the surface. Buried layer porosities cannot normally be measured by gravimetric techniques unless the volume of the buried layer is large enough to yield a measurable weight change on anodization. We therefore used a form of Faraday's Law to determine buried layer porosities and determined that they can be correlated with porosities of surface layers formed under identical conditions.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 107: Symposium H – Silicon-on-Insulator and Buried Metals in Semiconductors , 1987 , 455
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1988

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