Author(s) :

Taehong Kim, Jiaen Wang, Jose Jimenez, Judy Song, Taehong Kim, Yechan Park.

Volume/Issue :

Abstract :

In the semiconductor industry, manufacturing processes require varying degrees of hydrophobicity/ hydrophilicity in silicon wafers. To optimize transitions between these processes, the effectiveness of using acid/base to control the hydrophobicity/hydrophilicity of a silicon wafer following the addition of N-(6-aminohexyl)aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (AHAPTMOS) was examined. After coating with AHAPTMOS, the untreated wafer will become more relatively hydrophobic, but when acid is applied, the surface amino groups are protonated, theoretically increasing hydrophilicity; applying a base would neutralize the surface and reverse this process. A total of four trials were conducted, each trial consisting of four successive tests for a single wafer: No Coating, the control group, with the uncoated/untreated wafer; Coated But Not Treated, with AHAPTMOS applied to the same wafer; Acid Treated, with weak acid applied to the coated wafer; Base Treated, with a weak base applied to the acid-treated wafer. For each test, the contact angle was measured with a goniometer and the Ossila computer software. Results indicated that the hydrophobicity of the wafer was successfully manipulated: upon application of AHAPTMOS, the contact angle experienced a 46.18% increase from the control, and with the subsequent addition of acid, the contact angle yielded a 13.60% decrease. Then, the addition of a base resulted in a 23.14% increase in contact angle. These results have strong implications for future semiconductor research and manufacturing, as AHAPTMOS can be explored as a more efficient coupling agent to control the hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity of silicon wafers.