Microwave Annealing for Low Temperature Activation of As in Si

Microwave processing of semiconductors offers distinct advantages over conventional RTP systems in some applications. The energy contained in the microwave field can be dissipated directly into the semiconductor substrate, without the convection and conduction associated with conventional processing. In this work we describe the preliminary results of microwave annealing of heavily doped silicon layers. Contrary to previously reported application of microwave annealing which basically emulate the RTP processing conditions with fast ramping of the temperature to the high temperature, we use temperatures in the range of 400-500 degC. Although the annealing mechanism in this range of temperatures requires further investigation, we demonstrated the level of activation comparable with high temperature processing.