Annealing instabilities in small fabricated structures

[摘要] When small fabricated structures are annealed under conditions where significant mass transport can occur, details of the shape can be altered as the material tries to reduce its total surface free-energy. Fluctuations in local surface curvature can lead to instabilities under the right geometrical conditions. In this Letter we describe the development of inhomogeneities in thin columns and ridges which have been fabricated on Si(001) wafer surfaces. We believe these instabilities to be closely related to the ''Rayleigh'' instability that causes such diverse phenomena as the break-up of fine columns of fluid into drops or the break-up of cylindrical second-phase material in a solid matrix.

[发布日期] 1997-02-10

[关键词] scanning electron microscopy;silicon;semiconductor surfaces;surface morphology;surface tension