On the Properties of the Intrinsic Point Defects in Silicon: A Perspective from Crystal Growth and Wafer Processing

Taking into account a wide variety of recent results from studies of silicon crystal growth and high temperature wafer heat treatments, a consistent picture of intrinsic point defect behavior is produced. The relevant point defect parameters: diffusivities, equilibrium concentrations and the details of the interaction of vacancies with oxygen are deduced. This set of parameters successfully explains a very wide array of experimental observations covering the temperature range 900–1410 °C. These experimental observations, which are reviewed here, include the properties of grown-in microdefects and vacancy-controlled oxygen precipitation effects in rapidly cooled wafers. The analysis of point defect behavior from observations of high temperature phenomena such as these has the great advantage of relative simplicity and transparency.