Removal of Nano-Particles by Aerosol Spray: Effect of Droplet Size and Velocity on Cleaning Performance

As the dimensions of the structures of integrated circuits shrink, the influence of particles on device yield becomes increasingly important. According to the cleaning requirements of the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) in 2007, particles of 32 nm and larger are believed to be detrimental to devices and thus have to be removed. To remove nano-particles with minimal substrate loss and no damage requires very dilute chemistries and sufficiently gentle physical forces in a cleaning process. In this work the performance of an aerosol spray based cleaning technique is evaluated with regard to the removal efficiency of nano-particles as well as substrate loss and structural damage.