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Facility for rapid preparation of silicon and silicide TEM specimens
Author(s) -
Kritzinger S.,
Churms C. L.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
journal of microscopy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.569
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1365-2818
pISSN - 0022-2720
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2818.1984.tb02534.x
Subject(s) - polishing , silicon , transmission electron microscopy , materials science , semiconductor , reproducibility , silicide , jet (fluid) , metallurgy , chemical engineering , analytical chemistry (journal) , composite material , nanotechnology , optoelectronics , chemistry , chromatography , physics , engineering , thermodynamics
SUMMARY A simple chemical jet polishing arrangement, for the thinning of semiconductors or metals for transmission electron microscopy (TEM), is described for the specific case of silicon and silicides. The effect of variation in three mechanical parameters on the profile and quality of the specimen is described, and the optimum conditions are determined. A proposed polishing solution is one part 48% HF mixed with one part fuming HNO 3 . Reproducibility is only achieved in the presence of a relatively large concentration of nitrous acid in the polishing solution. The solution must also be relatively concentrated, as the reaction rate falls off rapidly with decreasing concentration.