Deep-Ultraviolet Laser-Based Defect Inspection of Single-Crystal 4H-SiC and SmartSiCTM Engineered Substrates for High Volume Manufacturing

Power devices electronics based on silicon carbide (SiC) are emerging as a breakthrough technology for a wide range of applications [1]. SiC engineered substrates provide a solution that fulfills power devices requirements, namely supplying high quality, ultra low resistivity materials. SmartSiC TM substrates, based on Smart Cut TM technology, combine the advantages of high quality single-crystal SiC and innovative pSiC handle material [2]. To achieve high volume manufacturing (HVM) of prime grade SiC engineered substrates, defects monitoring is crucial. This paper explains how a commercially available Deep-Ultraviolet (DUV) laser-based inspection system (KLA Surfscan® SC1) was successfully used for the quality control of SmartSiC TM and single-crystal 4H-SiC in a production environment. Detection of both surface and grown-in defects was investigated, on 150 mm and 200 mm substrates. Statistical data were collected and utilized for driving quality and yield continuous improvement.