Problem
Semiconductors power the modern world, driving innovations in computing, communications, healthcare, and renewable energy. As device dimensions shrink and performance requirements skyrocket, the industry is increasingly battling one of its most formidable adversaries: atomic-level contaminants and defects at semiconductor surfaces interfaces.
The challenges
Electrical Performance Degradation
Atomic-level defects and contaminants can introduce unwanted trap states at the surface and interfaces of semiconductor materials. These mid-gap trap states disrupt the smooth flow of charge carriers, leading to:
Reduced mobility and conductivity.
Increased leakage currents and power consumption.
Variability in device performance, undermining reliability.
Noise and Signal Integrity Issues
Impurities can amplify low-frequency noise (1/f noise) and random telegraph noise (RTN), which are particularly detrimental in precision applications like analog, RF, and high-speed digital circuits.
Device Reliability and Lifespan
Over time, impurities exacerbate degradation mechanisms such as: Hot carrier effects, which damage the semiconductor lattice. Bias temperature instability (BTI), reducing device lifespan. These effects lead to early device failures and costly system downtimes.
Manufacturing Yield and Cost Challenges
Impurities at the atomic-level cause unpredictable variations in device behavior, increasing defect rates. The result is lower manufacturing yield and higher costs for rework and quality control.
Why It’s Critical to Resolve These Issues
Enabling Next-Generation Technologies
From AI and 5G to autonomous vehicles and quantum computing, next-generation technologies demand unprecedented levels of performance and reliability. Resolving atomic-level defects and contaminants is key to meeting these requirements and enabling breakthroughs in innovation.
Sustaining Moore’s Law
As feature sizes continue to shrink, even minor impurities can have catastrophic impacts. Tackling these challenges is essential to sustaining Moore’s Law and ensuring the continued miniaturization of devices.
Economic and Environmental Impact
Reducing defects caused by impurities minimizes waste, improves yield, and lowers production costs. This not only drives profitability but also reduces the environmental footprint of semiconductor manufacturing.
The Path Forward
With these challenges in our hands and new opportunities rising, traditional cleaning methods such as solutions such as high-purity materials, atomic layer deposition (ALD) advanced plasma and chemical cleaning, are no longer sufficient. They are resulting in to environmental and safety issues, the processes are often complicated and slow, the materials or equipment are expensive - and atomic-level impurity issues remain largely unresolved. To correct crystalline structure problems can be made with high temperature annealing but that is not possible after the wafer has more complicated structures or metallization. High temperature solutions could cause bulk contamination through diffusion inside the structure.
By addressing atomic-level impurities, we can unlock the full potential of semiconductor devices, ensuring they meet the demands of the future while remaining reliable, efficient, and sustainable.
At SisuSemi, we are committed to supporting this critical mission, partnering with the semiconductor industry to tackle impurities head-on and pave the way for a cleaner, more efficient technological future.