Interfacial reaction of eutectic AuSi solder with Si (100) and Si (111) surfaces

The dissolution behavior of Si (100) and (111) dies by eutectic AuSi solder was investigated. On the Si (100) surface, the dissolution primarily occurred by the formation of craters resulting in a rough surface. The dissolution of the Si (111) resulted in a relatively smooth surface. The morphology of the Si (100) surface during a AuSi soldering reaction exhibited more time-dependent behavior and the etching craters on a Si (100) surface grew larger with time whereas Si (111) did not significantly change. This difference was ascribed to the surface energy differences between Si (111) and (100) surfaces that resulted in the two- and three-dimensional dissolution behaviors, respectively. This difference plays an important role in the formation of voids during the AuSi die bonding. The etching craters on Si (100) act as a AuSi solder sink and the regions surrounded by etch pits tend to become voids. For Si (111), flat surfaces were observed in the voided regions. Cross section analysis showed that no solder reaction occurred in the voided region of the Si (111) surface. This suggests the possibility of the formation of a thin inert layer in a potentially voided region prior to assembly. To achieve void-free die bonding, different parameters must be adjusted to the Si (100) and Si (111) surfaces with the AuSi alloy. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.