Procedure for rapid thermal annealing of implanted semiconductors

A process for fabricating a semiconductor device, which comprises enclosing a wafer of semiconductor material within a cavity of a container (hereinafter referred to as a black-box) comprising a base, an annular guard ring and a lid, said base, guard ring and lid comprising black-body material stable under annealing conditions, said wafer having dopant ions implanted into at least one selected area of at least one surface thereof and a layer of an encapsulating material over the said surface, and subjecting said wafer to a Rapid Thermal Anneal (RTA) including in succession a pre-anneal step, a main annealing step and a post-anneal step, and

• wherein said compound semiconductor material comprises GaAs, and said RTA includes exposure of the black-box with the wafer therein in succession to the pre-anneal step at temperatures ranging from 625.degree. to 675.degree. C. for a period of from 20 to 40 seconds, the main annealing step at a peak temperature within a range of from 900.degree. to 1000.degree. C. for a period of from 5 to 20 seconds, and the post-anneal step at temperatures ranging from 825.degree. to 875.degree. C. for a period of from 25 to 35 seconds, followed by cool down at a rate of from 5.degree. to 50.degree. C. per second.

A process for annealing semiconductor materials, which comprises enclosing a wafer of semiconductor material in a container (hereinafter referred to as a black box) having components comprising a base, a guard ring and a lid, said guard ring resting on the base and said lid resting on the guard ring, said black-box components being of a black-body material stable under annealing conditions, said wafer having dopant ions implanted into at least one selected area of at least one surface thereof and a layer of an encapsulating material over the said surface, and

• subjecting the semiconductor material within the black-box to a Rapid Thermal Anneal (RTA),
• wherein said semiconductor material comprises GaAs, said RTA includes exposure of the black-box with the wafer therein in succession to a pre-anneal at temperatures ranging from 625.degree. to 675.degree. C. for a period of from 20 to 40 seconds, the main annealing step at a peak temperature within a range of from 900.degree. to 1000.degree. C. for a period of from 5 to 20 seconds, and a post-anneal at temperatures ranging from 825.degree. to 875.degree. C. for a period of from 25 to 35 seconds, followed by cool down at a rate of from 5.degree. to 50.degree. C. per second.