Hole-Patterned Test Wafers

HOLE-PATTERNED TEST WAFERS

Hole-patterned test wafers have holes formed in a substrate or film. They are used to compare conditions for deposition, plating, etching, inspection, and other processes.

STANDARD STOCKIn-Stock Products

Can typically be shipped within 1 week.

CUSTOM PROCESSCustom Processing

We can form trench and hole patterns by etching, using an existing mask, a newly fabricated mask, or maskless exposure with a direct-write system. We support 4–12-inch wafers and chips.

Evaluation Applications

Cross-sectional observation of the top, sidewalls, and bottom of a hole allows comparison of film coverage, fill quality, and processed profiles.

ALD / CVD

Observe the films at the top, sidewalls, and bottom to compare the effects of deposition conditions.

PVD

Observe cross sections of films deposited inside holes to compare step coverage.

Cu Plating

Compare Cu fill quality and the occurrence of seams and voids.

Inspection

Use patterns with known dimensions and layouts to evaluate inspection equipment.

Evaluation Examples

PVD Cu Film Step Coverage

A test element group (TEG) fabricated by Philtech was used.

ALD Film Bottom Coverage

This example compares the bottom coverage of 2 types of ALD films in holes with an aspect ratio of approximately 8.

Example of cross-sectional observation of ALD films in high-aspect-ratio holes

Void Formation in Cu Plating

This example uses cross-sectional SEM images of 20 µm holes to compare void formation under different Cu plating conditions.

Cross section of Cu plating in a 20 µm hole, with no voids — Depth: 54 µm / Width: 20 µm

Cross section of Cu plating in a 20 µm hole, with a void — Hole dimension: 20 µm

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8-Inch Hole-Patterned Test Wafers (PT007)

8 INCH / TSV EVALUATION

PT007 is a 200 mm wafer for through-silicon via (TSV) process evaluation, with hole and trench patterns arranged within 1 chip.

Basic Specifications

Item	Details
Wafer Size	8 inches (200 mm)
Wafer Shape	Notched
Mask Name	PT007
Chip Size	19.95 mm × 20 mm
Subchip Size	6.65 mm × 10 mm
Mask Dimension	Holes: 10–30 µm / Cross-sectional observation patterns: 2–40 µm
Processing Method	Non-Bosch silicon etching

Pattern Dimensions and Layout

Hole Design Dimensions and Center-to-Center Pitch

PT007 includes square and octagonal hole patterns, with 4 center-to-center pitch options for each design dimension.

Design Dimension	Center-to-Center Pitch
10 µm	17 / 20 / 30 / 100 µm
15 µm	25 / 30 / 45 / 150 µm
20 µm	34 / 40 / 60 / 200 µm
25 µm	43 / 50 / 75 / 250 µm
30 µm	50 / 60 / 90 / 300 µm

PT007 Chip Layout

Within each 19.95 mm × 20 mm chip, 5 standard hole regions (one per size) and 1 cross-sectional observation region are arranged in 3 columns × 2 rows. The lower-right region contains 2–40 µm hole and trench patterns for cross-sectional observation.

PT007 GDS layout with color-coded chip boundaries, holes, and trenches, and the lower-right region labeled for cross-sectional observation — PT007 | Lower right: cross-sectional observation / HOLE: light blue / TRENCH: orange / Gray lines: chip and region boundaries

Patterns for Cross-Sectional Observation

Item	Details
Holes	Square: 2–40 µm / Octagonal: 5–40 µm
Trenches	Width: 2–40 µm / Length: 2700 µm
Arrangement	The 5–40 µm holes are arranged in a staggered array. The horizontal pitch is 3 times the design dimension.
Center-to-Center Pitch of 2 µm Square Holes	4 µm / 6 µm

The listed dimensions are design dimensions in the GDS data and may differ from the dimensions, depths, and tolerances after processing.

Measured Processing Examples

Note: The following are historical measurement examples from wafers fabricated under approximately the same conditions as the current stock products. Values may differ slightly from those of the current stock products.

Hole and Trench Measurements (Wafer Center and Edge)

Holes | Wafer Center

Mask Dimension	Depth	Top Dimension	Bottom Dimension
2	24.2	Not recorded	1.9
5	36.9	5.3	4.2
10	47.0	10.6	9.6
20	54.2	21.7	20.2

Holes | Wafer Edge

Mask Dimension	Depth	Top Dimension	Bottom Dimension
2	24.5	2.4	1.8
5	38.0	5.8	4.3
10	48.2	11.1	9.2
20	54.6	21.7	19.9

Unit: µm

Trenches | Wafer Center

Mask Dimension	Depth	Top Dimension	Bottom Dimension
2	36.1	2.5	1.8
5	48.4	6.0	4.4
10	57.3	11.1	9.6
20	61.4	22.0	21.0

Trenches | Wafer Edge

Mask Dimension	Depth	Top Dimension	Bottom Dimension
2	36.1	2.6	1.4
5	48.8	6.1	4.0
10	57.8	11.6	9.2
20	61.8	22.8	20.2

Unit: µm

Representative Cross-Sectional SEM Images (Design Dimensions: 2 and 10 µm)

Note: The cross-sectional SEM images were taken before removal of the hard mask. Product wafers are shipped after removal of the hard mask.

Design Dimension: 2 µm

Cross-sectional SEM image of 2 µm holes at the center of a PT007 wafer — Depth: 24.2 µm / Bottom width: 1.9 µm

Cross-sectional SEM image of 2 µm holes at the edge of a PT007 wafer — Depth: 24.5 µm / Top width: 2.4 µm / Bottom width: 1.8 µm

Cross-sectional SEM image of 2 µm trenches at the center of a PT007 wafer — Depth: 36.1 µm / Top width: 2.5 µm / Bottom width: 1.8 µm

Cross-sectional SEM image of 2 µm trenches at the edge of a PT007 wafer — Depth: 36.1 µm / Top width: 2.6 µm / Bottom width: 1.4 µm

Design Dimension: 10 µm