Exploring the limits of high temperature thermal processing for advanced 8-inch power technology manufacturing

Power processes are a challenge for 8-inch production especially in thermal processing. The temperatures exceed those used in DRAM and LOGIC by far and make a detailed knowledge of the critical process limits and maximum temperatures mandatory. We describe the experimental evaluation of these limits and compare the results to theoretical models, for both horizontal and vertical furnace equipment. Bulk micro defects are shown to be a key factor for any thermal process. We investigate in detail the key parameters for the different process regimes of boat push/pull, ramping as well as the impact of different boat and furnace equipment.