Failure analysis: The old and the new

Electron Beam Induced Current (EBIC) is a failure analysis technique that takes advantage of the flow of the electron-hole pairs formed by the interaction of the incident beam of the scanning electron microscope, and the p-n junctions within a semiconductor device. EBIC detects voids in the crystals, mask misalignments, and other manufacturing issues that lead to electron-hole pair sinks. An EBIC image shows the underlying silicon junctions, and a secondary electron (SE) image shows the circuitry. Both the SE image and the EBIC image can be collected simultaneously during a single scan, and then they can be overlaid in real time. The Cross Section Polisher (CP) utilizes a defocused argon ion beam to produce a relatively broad cut in comparison to the FIB. Additionally, the CP can polish the top surface of a thin film in a grazing incidence configuration. This enables both the crystal orientation and the porosity of the crystal formation to be analyzed.