A significant aspect of fabricating 3D chip architectures is ensuring proper contact between the different layers of the chip, which often requires removing the underside of isolation layers before filling vias with conductive material. Currently, scanning electron microscopy is the established method for investigating such structures. In this paper, we propose a rapid, non-destructive optical analysis technique for the simultaneous measurement of through-silicon vias (TSV) depths, silicon wafer thickness, and residual oxide thickness. The proposed method utilizes Fourier peak shift analysis (FPSA) of reflectance measurements in the near-infrared (1200 nm-2200 nm) spectral regions. The application of FPSA to representative samples taken from a commercial TSV integration process for MEMS and CMOS fabrication demonstrated good agreement with reference scanning electron microscopy measurements, confirming the feasibility of the method for in-line and in-situ metrology. The results indicate that FPSA has great potential for real-time process monitoring and control during 3D chip manufacturing.

Abstract: A significant aspect of fabricating 3D chip architectures is ensuring proper contact between the different layers of the chip, which often requires removing the underside of isolation layers before filling vias with conductive material. Currently, scanning electron microscopy is the established method for investigating such structures. In this paper, we propose a rapid, non-destructive optical analysis technique for the simultaneous measurement of Through Silicon Vias (TSV) depths, silicon wafer thickness, and residual oxide thickness. The proposed method utilizes Fourier Peak Shift Analysis (FPSA) of reflectance measurements in the near-infrared (1200 nm-2200 nm) spectral regions. The application of FPSA to representative samples taken from a commercial TSV integration process for MEMS and CMOS fabrication demonstrated good agreement with reference scanning electron microscopy measurements, confirming the feasibility of the method for in-line and in-situ metrology. The results indicate that FPSA has great potential for real-time process monitoring and control during 3D chip manufacturing.

Knowledge of optical constants, i.e. refractive index n and extinction coefficient k , and light scattering properties of optical polymers are required to optimize micro-optics for light-emitting diodes in terms of efficiency, color properties and light distribution. We present here a model-based diagnostic approach to determine the optical properties of polymers, which should be particularly useful in the development of plastics for optical applications. Optical constants and scattering coefficients were obtained from transmission and reflection measurements in a wavelength range from UV to NIR taking into account scattering effects due to rough surfaces and volume inhomogeneity. Based on the models for the dielectric function, the molecular optical transition energies E g , critical point energies, Urbach energies and exciton transition energies were determined. Rayleigh and Mie scattering model and van de Hulst's anomalous diffraction theory were applied to characterize scattering due to volume inhomogeneities. Scalar diffraction theory was applied to account for surface roughness scattering. Atomic force microscopy with nanomechanical characterization was used to characterize domains in size and shape and to assign optical scattering to a suitable morphological model. The combined optical and mechanical characterization help to improve the qualification of new polymer materials for optical applications.

In recent decades, much research effort has been invested in the development of photonic integrated circuits, and silicon-on-insulator technology has been established as a reliable platform for highly scalable silicon-based electro-optical modulators. However, the performance of such devices is restricted by the inherent material properties of silicon. An approach to overcoming these deficiencies is to integrate organic materials with exceptionally high optical nonlinearities into a silicon-on-insulator photonic platform. Silicon–organic hybrid photonics has been shown to overcome the drawbacks of silicon-based modulators in terms of operating speed, bandwidth, and energy consumption. This work reviews recent advances in silicon–organic hybrid photonics and covers the latest improvements to single components and device concepts. Special emphasis is given to the in-device performance of novel electro-optical polymers and the use of different electro-optical effects, such as the linear and quadratic electro-optical effect, as well as the electric-field-induced linear electro-optical effect. Finally, the inherent challenges of implementing non-linear optical polymers on a silicon photonic platform are discussed and a perspective for future directions is given.

In this work we present a novel optical polymer system based on polyurethane elastomer components, which combines excellent UV transparency with high thermal stability, good hardness, high surface tension and long pot life. The material looks very promising for encapsulation and microlensing applications for chip-on-board (CoB) light-emitting diodes (LED). The extinction coefficient k, refractive index n, and bandgap parameters were derived from transmission and reflection measurements in a wavelength range of 200-890 nm. Thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry were used to provide glass transition and degradation temperatures. The surface tension was determined by means of contact angle measurements. As proof of concept, a commercial InGaN-CoB-LED is used to demonstrate the suitability of the new material for the production of microlenses.

Comprehensive diagnostics is a prerequisite for the application of graphene in semiconductor technologies. Here, the authors present long-term investigations of graphene on 200-mm Ge(100)/Si(100) wafers under clean room environmental conditions. Diagnostic of graphene was performed by a fast and nondestructive metrology method based on the combination of spectroscopic ellipsometry and reflectometry (SE/R), realized within a wafer optical metrology tool. A robust procedure for unambiguous thickness monitoring of a multilayer film stack, including graphene, interface layer GeOx underneath graphene, and surface roughness is developed and applied for process control. The authors found a relationship between the quality of graphene and the growth of GeOx beneath graphene. Enhanced oxidation of Ge beneath graphene was registered as a long-term process. SE/R measurements were validated and complemented using atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and secondary ion mass spectrometry. This comparative study shows a high potential for optical metrology of graphene deposited on Ge/Si structures, due to its great sensitivity, repeatability, and flexibility, realized in a nondestructive way.

Through Silicon Via (TSV) technology is a key in 3D integration of circuits by the creation of interconnects using vias, which go through the full silicon wafer. Typically, a highly-selective Bosch Si etch process is used. It is characterized by a high etch rate at a high aspect ratio, whereby scallops on the sidewalls are generated. In this work, square via arrays with dimensions from 3 to 50 μm and up to 300 μm depth were fabricated and analyzed by spectroscopic reflectometry. The reflectometric data are compared to simulations by a novel theoretical approach. In order to simulate the reflectance spectra of TSV arrays, a combination of 2D and 3D rigorous coupled wave analysis was applied. Besides the via depth, the sidewall angle and the corner radius of the bottom profile were considered in the model. The general requirements on spectral resolution in TSV metrology are discussed.

This paper proposes a hybrid-waveguide ring resonator for on-chip biochemical sensing. Consisting of a low-loss strip-waveguide and a highly sensitive slot-waveguide integrated in a silicon photonic platform, it combines advantages of both waveguide types. In this way, it provides the unique feature to increase the sensitivity while maintaining low optical losses. Thus, this resonator structure may represent a promising alternative approach for future integrated biochemical sensing applications. This is suggested by a theoretical analysis, involving numerical simulation of the hybrid-waveguide ring resonator and an optimization of the slot-waveguide structure with regard to light-analyte-interaction. It is demonstrated that the hybrid-waveguide concept may overcome limitations in terms of overall resonator sensitivity, which is described by a figure of merit, connecting the optical losses with the resonator sensitivity.

Integrated photonic devices have gained increasing research interests. Especially silicon photonics have become very attractive for various optical applications. Using silicon-on-insulator as a material platform provides the ability to fabricate photonic devices with electronic devices on a single chip. Driven by substantial research investments, the integration of photonic devices on silicon-on-insulator substrates has reached a degree of maturity that already permits industrial adoption. However, silicon has the disadvantage of linear electro-optical effects, and, therefore, advanced modulation formats are difficult to realize when using silicon-based high-speed modulators. Hence, a new approach was proposed: the silicon-organic hybrid technology. This technology is a viable extension of the silicon-on-insulator material system for efficient high-speed modulation. We herewith present our theoretical and experimental investigations of the silicon-organic hybrid slot-waveguide ring resonator. The advanced device design is described in detail, which allows using both, the efficient silicon-on-insulator strip-waveguides and the silicon-organic hybrid slot-waveguides in single ring resonator. For the first time, we report the transmission spectra of such a resonator covered with an electro-optical polymer.

In this work, we present for the first time a partially slotted silicon ring resonator (PSRR) covered with an electro-optical polymer (Poly[(methyl methacrylate)-co-(Disperse Red 1 acrylate)]). The PSRR takes advantage of both a highly efficient vertical slot waveguide based phase shifter and a low loss strip waveguide in a single ring. The device is realized on 200 mm silicon-on-insulator wafers using 248 nm DUV lithography and covered with the electro-optic polymer in a post process. This silicon-organic hybrid ring resonator has a small footprint, high optical quality factor, and high DC device tunability. A quality factor of up to 105 and a DC device tunability of about 700 pm/V is experimentally demonstrated in the wavelength range of 1540 nm to 1590 nm. Further, we compare our results with state-of-the-art silicon-organic hybrid devices by determining the poling efficiency. It is demonstrated that the active PSRR is a promising candidate for efficient optical switches and tunable filters.

Slot waveguide ring resonators appear promising candidates for several applications in silicon photonics. Strong field confinement, high device tunability, and low power consumption are beneficial properties compared with strip waveguides. Slot waveguide ring resonators suffer, however, from rather low optical quality factors due to optical losses. This letter proposes and experimentally demonstrates a novel concept based on a partially slotted ring and a strip-to-slot mode converter. An exceptional high quality factor of similar to 10(5) has been measured.

In this letter, we present a wafer level technology based on deep-ultraviolet lithography to fabricate Bragg gratings on silicon-on-insulator rib waveguides. The principle of the used double-patterning technique is presented, as well the influence of the process variation on the device performances. The fabricated Bragg gratings were characterized and compared to analogue structures patterned with electron-beam lithography.