The Effect of Hydrogen Plasma on Surface Roughness and Activation in SOI Wafer Fabrication

The hydrogen plasma treatment of silicon wafers in the reactive ion-etching mode was studied for the application to silicon-on-insulator wafers which were prepared using the wafer bonding technique. The chemical reactions of hydrogen plasma with surface were used for both surface activation and removal of surface contaminants. As a result of exposure of silicon wafers to the plasma, an active oxide layer was found on the surface. This layer was rendered hydrophilic. The surface roughness and morphology were examined as functions of the plasma exposing time and power. In addition, the surface became smoother with the shorter plasma exposing time and power. The value of initial surface energy estimated by the crack propagation method was 506 mJ/㎡, which was up to about three times higher as compared to the case of conventional direct using the wet RCA cleaning method.