Amethyst Wafer Mapping (AWM)

An ARI patented defect characterization technique, which involves the use of hydrogen (or more specifically deuterium), which diffuses rapidly within the semiconductor lattice and is trapped at defects.  The trapping of hydrogen generally occurs as a result of chemical binding to dangling bonds associated with defects such that the profile of hydrogen yields a rather faithful representation of the distribution of lattice disorder in semiconductors. AWM is a conflation of two processes: (1) deuterium (D or 2H) decoration of structural defects in semiconductors to map their density and distribution, and (2) nuclear reaction analysis (NRA) for deuterium detection. Typical applications are 2-D mapping of structural defects in semiconductors.  It can be readily deployed in IRFPA manufacturing for material assessment, process characterization, and failure analysis.

Fig.: Schematic illustration of (a) motion of particle before and after nuclear reaction (b) experimental setup for NRA (c) schematic of close-coupling of annular detector and sample

Fig.: 2-D wafer mapping of HgCdTe/CdZnTe/Si heterostructures

CURRENT NEWS

• ARI named "Venture of the Year": Oct 11
• ARI and ADA National SBIR Conference: Sep 11
• ARI hosts Chamber Business After hours: Jun 11
• 2-year funding approved from OCAST: May 11
• Recruiting senior-related companies: Apr 11
• In-depth look at human resources: Mar 11
• Rob Kuester awarded 5-year service award: Mar 11