Publikationsrepositorium - Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf

The determination of built-in strain in semiconductor devices with nanometer spatial resolution and high sensitivity is needed for the characterization of nanoscale electronic devices. Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) is an atomic force microscopy-based method that provides the spatially resolved surface potential at the sample surface, fulfilling the requirements on resolution and sensitivity. The contrast observed in KPFM imaging is often attributed to stress, but there are only a few reports on the application of KPFM for quantitative stress analysis [1]. In this contribution we focus on the application of KPFM for analysis of stress in silicon devices, such as copper through silicon vias and silicon membranes. The experimental results are compared with density functional theory calculations of strained silicon. This work provides critical insights into the quantitative determination of stress at the nanoscale that so far has gone largely unnoticed in the scanning probe microscopy community.
[1] W. Li, D.Y. Li, J. Appl. Phys. 99, 073502 (2006).