Integrated Circuits and IC Chips Dhiraj Pahuja RK3701B27 11011871

What is Integrated Circuits?

An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit is a set of electronic circuits on one small plate of semiconductor material, normally silicon. This can be made much smaller than a discrete circuit made from independent components. Integrated circuits are used in virtually all electronic equipment today and have revolutionized the world phones, of electronics. Computers, mobile

gradually

created

on

a wafer made

of is

pure semiconducting material. Silicon

almost always used, but various compound semiconductors are used for specialized applications. The IC manufacturing process begins with the production of wafers. Raw wafers are usually produced by third parties and when purchased are ready for processing. Very pure sing1e crystal silicon is grown from specially pure sand (silicon dioxide). If required, the crystal is ground into a perfect cylindrical shape. Millimeter thin slices, called raw wafers, are sawed from the crystal, polished, and shipped to IC manufacturers. In fabrication, three dimensional structures are defined on the silicon wafer. After fabrication, wafers are probed and defective dice are marked. Wafers are then sectioned into tens to hundreds of chips. These are sorted according to performance characteristics, shipped assembled in protective shells, further tested and sorted and finally

and other digital home appliances are now inextricable parts of the structure of modern societies, made possible by the low cost of producing integrated circuits.

What is Fabrication Process?

Semiconductor device fabrication is the process used to are create the integrated present sequence in of circuits that is a

everyday electrical and electronic devices. It multiple-step photolithographic and chemical processing steps during which electronic circuits are

The IC fabrication process takes place in a clean room, where special measures are adopted to maintain the level of particle contamination low. Circuits are constructed in layers, one at a time. Each layer is defined by a pattern on a glass plate, called a photomask , whose features are transferred to the surface of the silicon wafer. This process of photoengraving, called photolithography or simply masking, is key to fabrication. A wafer commonly undergoes over ten photolithographic steps in its fabrication process. Between visits to the photolithography station a wafer visits stations where other physical and chemical processes are carried out. These include oxidation, diffusion, ion implantation, metallization, and etching. The fabrication process may require over 10 weeks from raw wafer to wafer probe.

by projection of light through a reticle containing mask information. Etching: Selectively removing unwanted material from the surface of the wafer. The pattern of the photo-resist is transferred to the wafer by means of etching agents. Deposition: Films of the various materials are applied on the wafer. For this purpose mostly two kind of processes are used, physical vapor deposition (PVD) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Chemical Mechanical Polishing: A planarization technique by applying a chemical slurry with etchant agents to the wafer surface. Oxidation: In the oxidation process oxygen (dry oxidation) or H O (wet

The steps:

fabrication

of

integrated

circuits

oxidation) molecules convert silicon layers on top of the wafer to silicon dioxide.

consists basically of the following process

Lithography: The

process

for

Ion

Implantation: Most

widely

pattern definition by applying thin uniform layer of viscous liquid (photo-resist) on the wafer surface. The photo-resist is hardened by baking and than selectively removed

used technique to introduce dopant impurities into semiconductor. The ionized particles are accelerated through an electrical field and targeted at the semiconductor wafer.

Diffusion: A

diffusion

step

capacitances exceeding 30 pF. Therefore, for higher values of capacitance, discrete components connected. 7. High grade P-N-P assembly is not possible. 8. Low temperature coefficient is difficult to be achieved. 9. Difficult to fabricate an IC with low noise. 10. Large value of saturation resistance of transistors. 11. Voltage dependence of resistors and capacitors. 12. The diffusion processes and other related procedures used in the fabrication process are not good enough to permit a precise control of the parameter values for the circuit elements. However, control of the ratios is at a sufficiently acceptable level. exterior to IC chip are

following ion implantation is used to anneal bombardment-induced lattice defects.

Limitations of Integrated Circuits

The integrated circuits have few limitations also, as listed below :1. In an IC the various components are part of a small semi-conductor chip and the individual component or components cannot be removed or replaced, therefore, if any component in an IC fails, the whole IC has to be replaced by the new one. 2. Limited power rating as it is not possible to manufacture high power (say greater than 10 Watt) ICs. 3. Need of connecting inductors and transformers exterior to the semi-conductor chip as it is not possible to fabricate inductors and transformers on the semiconductor chip surface. 4. Operations at low voltage as ICs function at fairly low voltage. 5. Quite delicate in handling as these cannot withstand rough handling or excessive heat. 6. Need of connecting capacitor exterior to the semi-conductor chip as it is neither convenient nor economical to fabricate

Difference Between Vaccum Tubes & Integrated Circuits

Vacuum tubes were primitive devices used in circuits before the invention of transistors. Transistors replaced them in every circuit and minimized their size in a great deal. Later on ICs replaced transistors n reduced the circuit size enormously

An IC can perform many functions while the tube can only amplify

The IC is very small in size1000:1 ratio.

the IC is very power efficient compared to a tube.

Difference between Integrated circuits (IC) and Transistor

An IC can have many transistors and/or rectifiers built into it, while a transistor has only an NPN or a PNP junction. The only single transistors used these days are high power or high current when heat sinks are required.

References:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_circuit en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fabrication wwwinst.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ee105/fa00/lectures/Le ctw2.PDF www.iue.tuwien.ac.at/phd/ceric/node8.html