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OwnerWilliam Andrew Nevin, Paul Damien McCann +1inventors
InventorsWilliam Andrew Nevin, Paul Damien McCann, Garry Patrick O'Neill
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A method for bonding a pair of silicon wafers (2,3) together to form a semiconductor wafer (1) wherein an interface surface (5) of one of the silicon wafers (3) is pretreated by an ion implantation or diffusion process prior to bonding of the silicon wafers (2,3). The method includes subjecting the pretreated interface surface (5) to an initial anneal step at approximately 700° C. for 60 minutes for recrystallising the interface surface, and then subjecting both interface surfaces (4,5) to two cleaning steps with respective first and second cleaning solutions, neither of which contain sulphuric acid. The first cleaning solution comprises hydrogen peroxide, ammonia and water, while the second cleaning solution comprises hydrofluoric acid and water. The respective interface surfaces (4,5) are rinsed with water after each cleaning step, and the silicon wafers (2,3) are bonded by anneal bonding at a temperature of the order of 1,150° C. for approximately 60 minutes.
A method for bonding a pair of silicon wafers together at adjacent abutting interface surfaces of the respective silicon wafers to form a semiconductor wafer, wherein at least one of the interface surfaces has been pretreated by being subjected to one of an ion implantation process and a diffusion process prior to bonding, the method comprising the steps of:
A semiconductor wafer comprising a pair of silicon wafers bonded together by anneal bonding, the bonded silicon wafers each defining an interface surface abutting the interface surface of the other silicon wafer, at least one of the interface surfaces having been subjected to a pretreatment prior to bonding by one of an ion implantation process and a diffusion process, each pretreated interface surface having been subjected to at least one cleaning step with a cleaning solution prior to the silicon wafers being subjected to the anneal bonding, the cleaning solution of each cleaning step being substantially non-absorbable through the interface surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.