HalbleiterWafern

HalbleiterWafern is a thin circular disc made of semiconductor-grade material that serves as the substrate for manufacturing integrated circuits and microelectromechanical systems. The most common material is silicon, chosen for its electronic properties, defect tolerance, and abundant supply; other materials such as gallium arsenide (GaAs), silicon carbide (SiC), and gallium nitride (GaN) are used for specialized devices.

Wafer fabrication begins with crystal growth by methods such as the Czochralski (CZ) process or float-zone (FZ) process. The crystal is sliced into disks, then polished to a mirror finish and cleaned. Wafers may be doped to create p-type or n-type substrates and may receive epitaxial layers for device fabrication. The crystallographic orientation, commonly <100> or <111>, influences etching and transistor properties.

Standard diameters range from small lab sizes to 300 mm (12 inches), with thickness of a few hundred micrometers. Manufacturing tolerates precise flatness and surface quality, achieved through chemical-mechanical polishing and surface treatments. Wafers pass through photolithography, deposition, etching, and other steps before devices are formed. After processing, HalbleiterWafern can be diced into individual chips or packaged wafer-level devices.

Applications include integrated circuits, MEMS, sensors, and photovoltaic cells. Quality control relies on cleanroom environments, defect density measurements, wafer maps, and lot traceability, guided by SEMI and other industry standards.

Trends include ongoing scaling to larger diameters, the use of advanced materials for specific applications, and wafer-level packaging to improve yield and efficiency.