3.1 Synthesis and purification of bulk semiconductors

Introduction

The synthesis and purification of bulk polycrystalline semiconductor material represents the first step towards the commercial fabrication of an electronic device. This polycrystalline material is then used as the raw material for the formation of single crystal material that is processed to semiconductor wafers. The strong influence on the electric characteristics of a semiconductors exhibited by small amounts of some impurities requires that the bulk raw material be of very high purity (>99.9999%). Although some level of purification is possible during the crystallization process it is important to use as high a purity starting material as possible. While a wide range of substrate materials are available from commercial vendors, silicon and GaAs represent the only large-scale commercial semiconductor substrates, and thus the discussion will be limited to the synthesis and purification of these materials.

Silicon

Following oxygen (46%), silicon (L. silicis flint) is the most abundant element in the earth's crust (28%). However, silicon does not occur in its elemental form, but as its oxide (SiO ₂ ) or as silicates. Sand, quartz, amethyst, agate, flint, and opal are some of the forms in which the oxide appears. Granite, hornblende, asbestos, feldspar, clay and mica, etc. are a few of the numerous silicate minerals. With such boundless supplies of the raw material, the costs associated with the production of bulk silicon is not one of abstraction and conversion of the oxide(s), but of purification of the crude elemental silicon. While 98% elemental silicon, known as metallurgical-grade silicon (MGS), is readily produced on a large scale, the requirements of extreme purity for electronic device fabrication require additional purification steps in order to produce electronic-grade silicon (EGS). Electronic-grade silicon is also known as semiconductor-grade silicon (SGS). In order for the purity levels to be acceptable for subsequent crystal growth and device fabrication, EGS must have carbon and oxygen impurity levels less than a few parts per million (ppm), and metal impurities at the parts per billion (ppb) range or lower. [link] and [link] give typical impurity concentrations in MGS and EGS, respectively. Besides the purity, the production cost and the specifications must meet the industry desires.

Metallurgical-grade silicon (mgs)

The typical source material for commercial production of elemental silicon is quartzite gravel; a relatively pure form of sand (SiO ₂ ). The first step in the synthesis of silicon is the melting and reduction of the silica in a submerged-electrode arc furnace. An example of which is shown schematically in [link] , along with the appropriate chemical reactions. A mixture of quartzite gravel and carbon are heated to high temperatures (ca. 1800 °C) in the furnace. The carbon bed consists of a mixture of coal, coke, and wood chips. The latter providing the necessary porosity such that the gases created during the reaction (SiO and CO) are able to flow through the bed.