Renke Kang

Electroforming of Copper/ZrB2 Composites Coatings and Its Performance as Electro-Discharge Machining Electrodes

Copper electroforming, together with rapid prototyping (RP) technology, provides a method for manufacturing EDM electrodes rapidly. However, the use of conventional electroformed copper electrodes is restricted because of the high electrode wear rate in EDM processes. This paper presents a study on the electroforming technique of copper/zirconium diboride (ZrB2) composite coating and its performance as an EDM electrode. Cu-ZrB2 composite coating is electroformed from a copper nitrate bath containing micro-sized ZrB2 particles in such a way that by varying the process parameters, ZrB2 particles approximate to 20 Vol.% are incorporated in the coatings. Analyses by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy reveal that ZrB2 particles are uniformly dispersed in the copper matrix and the grains of the coating are refined due to the incorporation of ZrB2 particles. The electroformed coatings deposited on copper substrates with approximately 1mm thickness are used as electrodes. EDM experiment shows that performance such as the spark-resistance of the new electrodes is improved compared with that of conventional electroformed copper electrodes because the incorporation of refractory particles in the copper matrix as well as the refinement of the grains of the coating, and the. Cu-ZrB2 composites show good performance in finish machining condition.

Chemical mechanical polishing and nanomechanics of semiconductor CdZnTe single crystals

(1 1 1), (1 1 0) Cd0.96Zn0.04Te and (1 1 1) Cd0.9Zn0.1Te semiconductor wafers grown by the modified vertical Bridgman method with dimensions of 10 mm × 10 mm × 2.5 mm were lapped with a 2–5 µm polygonal Al2O3 powder solution, and then chemically mechanically polished by an acid solution having nanoparticles with a diameter of around 5 nm, corresponding to the surface roughnesses Ra of 2.135 nm, 1.968 nm and 1.856 nm. The hardness and elastic modulus of (1 1 1), (1 1 0) Cd0.96Zn0.04Te and (1 1 1) Cd0.9Zn0.1Te single crystals are 1.21 GPa, 42.5 GPa; 1.02 GPa, 44.0 GPa; and 1.19 GPa, 43.4 GPa, respectively. After nanocutting is performed by the Berkovich nanoindenter, the surface roughness Ra of the (1 1 1) Cd0.9Zn0.1Te single crystal attains a 0.215 nm ultra-smooth surface. The hardness and elastic modulus of three kinds of CdZnTe single crystals decrease with the increase of indentation load. When the nanoindenter departs the surface of the crystals, the adherence effects are obvious for the three kinds of single crystals. This is attributed to the plastic sticking behavior of CdZnTe material at a nanoscale level. When the indentation load of the three kinds of CdZnTe single crystals is in the range of 4000–12 000 µN, the adhered CdZnTe material on the nanoindenter falls onto the surface and accumulates around the nanoindentation.

A novel approach of high speed scratching on silicon wafers at nanoscale depths of cut

In this study, a novel approach of high speed scratching is carried out on silicon (Si) wafers at nanoscale depths of cut to investigate the fundamental mechanisms in wafering of solar cells. The scratching is conducted on a Si wafer of 150 mm diameter with an ultraprecision grinder at a speed of 8.4 to 15 m/s. Single-point diamonds of a tip radius of 174, 324, and 786 nm, respectively, are used in the study. The study finds that at the onset of chip formation, an amorphous layer is formed at the topmost of the residual scratch, followed by the pristine crystalline lattice beneath. This is different from the previous findings in low speed scratching and high speed grinding, in which there is an amorphous layer at the top and a damaged layer underneath. The final width and depth of the residual scratch at the onset of chip formation measured vary from 288 to 316 nm, and from 49 to 62 nm, respectively. High pressure phases are absent from the scratch at the onset of either chip or crack formation.

A novel approach of chemical mechanical polishing for cadmium zinc telluride wafers

A novel approach of chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is developed for cadmium zinc telluride (CdZnTe or CZT) wafers. The approach uses environment-friendly slurry that consists of mainly silica, hydrogen peroxide, and citric acid. This is different from the previously reported slurries that are usually composed of strong acid, alkali, and bromine methanol, and are detrimental to the environment and operators. Surface roughness 0.5 nm and 4.7 nm are achieved for Ra and peak-to-valley (PV) values respectively in a measurement area of 70 × 50 μm2, using the developed novel approach. Fundamental polishing mechanisms are also investigated in terms of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electrochemical measurements. Hydrogen peroxide dominates the passivating process during the CMP of CZT wafers, indicating by the lowest passivation current density among silica, citric acid and hydrogen peroxide solution. Chemical reaction equations are proposed during CMP according to the XPS and electrochemical measurements.

Modeling and Analyzing on Nonuniformity of Material Removal in Chemical Mechanical Polishing of Silicon Wafer

Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) has already become a mainstream technology in global planarization of wafer, but the mechanism of nonuniform material removal has not been revealed. In this paper, the calculation of particle movement tracks on wafer surface was conducted by the motion relationship between the wafer and the polishing pad on a large-sized single head CMP machine. Based on the distribution of particle tracks on wafer surface, the model for the within-wafer-nonuniformity (WIWNU) of material removal was put forward. By the calculation and analysis, the relationship between the motion variables of the CMP machine and the WIWNU of material removal on wafer surface had been derived. This model can be used not only for predicting the WIWNU, but also for providing theoretical guide to the design of CMP equipment, selecting the motion variables of CMP and further understanding the material removal mechanism in wafer CMP.

Design and evaluation of soft abrasive grinding wheels for silicon wafers

The objective of this study is to design and evaluate soft abrasive wheels for silicon wafer grinding. In this study, CeO2, SiO2, Fe2O3 and MgO soft abrasives are used in the design of soft abrasive grinding wheels. The soft abrasive grinding wheels are then used to grind silicon wafers and compared with diamond wheel grinding and chemomechanical polishing. This study demonstrates that the newly designed soft abrasive grinding wheels are generally superior to diamond wheel grinding or chemomechanical polishing in terms of wafer surface/subsurface quality, wheel dressability, grinding ratio and material removal rate. This study further identifies the MgO soft abrasive grinding wheel as the best of the four soft abrasive grinding wheels. Discussion is provided to explore material removal mechanisms, wheel dressing characteristics and wafer surface finish and quality of the newly designed soft abrasive grinding wheels.

Nanogrinding of SiC wafers with high flatness and low subsurface damage

Abstract Nanogrinding of SiC wafers with high flatness and low subsurface damage was proposed and nanogrinding experiments were carried out on an ultra precision grinding machine with fine diamond wheels. Experimental results show that nanogrinding can produce flatness less than 1.0 μm and a surface roughness Ra of 0.42 nm. It is found that nanogrinding is capable of producing much flatter SiC wafers with a lower damage than double side lapping and mechanical polishing in much less time and it can replace double side lapping and mechanical polishing and reduce the removal amount of chemical mechanical polishing.

Material Removal Mechanism of Chemo-Mechanical Grinding (CMG) of Si Wafer by Using Soft Abrasive Grinding Wheel (SAGW)

An innovative fixed abrasive grinding process of chemo-mechanical grinding (CMG) by using soft abrasive grinding wheel (SAGW) has been recently proposed to achieve a damage-free ground workpiece surface. The basic principle, ideas and characteristics of CMG with SAGW are briefly introduced in this paper. The CMG experiments using newly developed SAGW for Si wafer are conducted at the condition of dry grinding. The grinding performances are evaluated and analyzed in terms of surface roughness, surface topography and surface/subsurface damage of ground wafer by use of Zygo interferometer, Scan Introduction ning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Cross-section Transmission Electron Microscope (Cross-section TEM). The component of product of ground Si surface is studied by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) to verify chemical reaction between the abrasive / additives of grinding wheel and Si wafer. The CMG process model by using SAGW is developed to understand the material removal mechanism and generation principle of damage-free surface. The study results show that the material removal mechanism of CMG by using SAGW can be explained as a hybrid process of chemical and mechanical action.

Nanoscale solely amorphous layer in silicon wafers induced by a newly developed diamond wheel

Nanoscale solely amorphous layer is achieved in silicon (Si) wafers, using a developed diamond wheel with ceria, which is confirmed by high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). This is different from previous reports of ultraprecision grinding, nanoindentation and nanoscratch, in which an amorphous layer at the top, followed by a crystalline damaged layer beneath. The thicknesses of amorphous layer are 43 and 48 nm at infeed rates of 8 and 15 μm/min, respectively, which is verified using HRTEM. Diamond-cubic Si-I phase is verified in Si wafers using selected area electron diffraction patterns, indicating the absence of high pressure phases. Ceria plays an important role in the diamond wheel for achieving ultrasmooth and bright surfaces using ultraprecision grinding.

Study on the Subsurface Damage Distribution of the Silicon Wafer Ground by Diamond Wheel

Using the cross-section angle polishing microscopy, the subsurface damage of the silicon wafers (100) ground by the diamond wheels with different grain size were investigated, and subsurface damage distributions in different crystal orientations and radial locations of the silicon wafers (100) were analyzed. The experiment results showed that the grain size of diamond wheel has great influence on the subsurface damage depth of the ground wafer. On the ground wafer without spark-out process, the subsurface damage depth increased along the radical direction from the centre to the edge and the subsurface damage depth in <110> crystal orientation was larger than that in <100> crystal orientation; but on the ground wafer with spark-out process, the subsurface damage depth in different crystal orientations and radial locations become uniform.