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Total reflection X-Ray Fluorescence (TXRF)

Brief description of the Method

Total reflection X-ray fluorescence (TXRF) analysis is a well-established method to monitor lowest level contamination on semiconductor surfaces. We operate dedicated instrumentation for analyzing light element contamination on wafer pieces as well as wafer surfaces with a diameter of up to 300 mm.

Due to the use of calibrated instrumentation and the knowledge of the effective solid angle [1], traceable quantitative results can be obtained without the need of any calibration standard [1,2].

Expertise

  • Analytic capabilities for full wafer analysis (diameters from 2” up to 300 mm)
  • Reference-free quantification

Applications

  • Monitoring of surface contaminations
  • Both organic and inorganic contaminations detectable
  • Discrimination between layer-like - and particle-like contaminations
  • Chemical speciation with NEXAFS

Specifications

  • Elements with Z ≥ 5 detectable
  • Sample sizes up to 300 mm for silicon wafers and 4” for other wafers

Research Highlights

  • Highly sensitive detection of organic [3] and inorganic Contamination [4]