DETERMINATION OF OXYGEN IN SILICON IN SUB-PART-PER-MILLION RANGE BY CHARGED-PARTICLE ACTIVATION ANALYSIS

This article presents results for the determination of trace amounts of oxygen in silicon by charged particle activation analysis. A nondestructive analytical method using proton, helium-3, and helium-4 activation has been developed and applied on a number of silicon samples with oxygen concentrations ranging from 20 to ~0.01 ppm. Case studies which included repeated analyses on each sample allowed an evaluation of experimental detection limits and systematic errors for the individual nuclear reactions. The accuracy of the method was evaluated in the 1- to 10-ppm range by comparing the charged particle activation results with those obtained by infrared spectrometry. For oxygen concentrations below 0.5 ppm, repeated nondestructive determinations were carried out using different activating particles. The agreement between the results obtained shows that accurate oxygen determinations can be obtained at the subppm level. 1970, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.

DETERMINATION OF OXYGEN IN SILICON IN SUB-PART-PER-MILLION RANGE BY CHARGED-PARTICLE ACTIVATION ANALYSIS Academic Article