METHOD OF REMOVING NANOCLUSTERS IN A SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE

摘要

A method for removing nanoclusters (16) from a semiconductor device (10) includes etching a selected portion of an insulating layer (18), flowing a reducing gas (H<SUB>2</SUB>) over the semiconductor device (10) at a temperature in a range of 400 - 900 degrees Celsius, and flowing a gas comprising halogen over the semiconductor device (10) a temperature in a range of 400 - 900 degrees Celsius. In another form, a method for removing the nanoclusters (16) includes implanting germanium or nitrogen into the nanoclusters (16), etching a selected portion of the insulating layer (18) using a dry etch process, and removing the layer of nanoclusters (16) using a wet etch process that is selective to an insulating layer (14).