PH adjusted nonionic surfactant-containing alkaline cleaner composition for cleaning microelectronics substrates

An alkaline cleaning solution for microelectronics substrates comprising from about 0.1% to about 25% by weight of an aqueous metal ion free base selected from the group consisting of ammonium hydroxide, alkanolamines, quanidine, quaternary ammonium hydroxides and mixtures thereof, from about 0.01% to about 5% by weight of a nonionic surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkynol surfactants, fluorinated alkyl alkoxylates, fluorinated alkyl esterse, fluorinated polyoxyethylene alkanols, aliphatic acid esters of polyhydric alcohols, polyoxyethylene monoalkyl ethers, polyoxyethylene diols, siloxane surfactants and akylene glycol monoalkyl ethers and mixtures thereof and from about 0.1% to about 10% by weight of a pH reducing chemical buffering component to reduce and control the pH of the cleaning solution to a pH within the range of from about pH 8 to about pH 10 and wherein the chemical buffering component to reduce and control the pH of the cleaning solution is selected from the group consisting of inorganic mineral acids and their salts, ammonium hydroxide and its salts, acetic acid and its salts and mixtures thereof.