Polydimethylsiloxane as polymeric protective coating for fabrication of ultra-thin chips

Gupta, S., Vilouras, A. and Dahiya, R. (2020) Polydimethylsiloxane as polymeric protective coating for fabrication of ultra-thin chips. Microelectronic Engineering, 221, 111157. (doi: 10.1016/j.mee.2019.111157)

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Abstract

The bendable silicon-based ultra-thin chips (UTCs), with thickness below 50 μm are needed to provide high-performance flexible electronics for several emerging applications ranging from flexible displays to robotic e-skin. The UTCs from standard silicon wafer are obtained by etching the bulk material from the backside of the wafer using a wet chemical etchant. During the etching process, it is imperative to protect the front processed side from the etchant as in most cases, the etchant is incompatible with the metals and other materials used in the fabrication of devices. This paper reports a new method using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as the protective coating during wet etching of silicon. The silicon sample is thinned to sub-25 μm thickness using Tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH), while PDMS acting as a protective coating, which is removed after thinning by using a chemical composition involving a nucleophilic attack on siloxane bond. As a bulk material with low- temperature processing requirements, PDMS offers an interesting alternative to other commercially available materials. The presented approach offers a range of advantages compared to other polymeric materials that are being used for the above-mentioned purpose.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:This work was supported in part by the EPSRC through Engineering Fellowship for Growth (EP/M002527/1 and EP/R029644/1) and EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Intelligent Sensing and Measurement (EP/L016753/1).
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Vilouras, Anastasios and Dahiya, Professor Ravinder and Gupta, Mr Shoubhik
Authors: Gupta, S., Vilouras, A., and Dahiya, R.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Electronics and Nanoscale Engineering
Journal Name:Microelectronic Engineering
Publisher:Elsevier
ISSN:0167-9317
ISSN (Online):1873-5568
Published Online:23 October 2019
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2019 Elsevier
First Published:First published in Microelectronic Engineering 221:111157
Publisher Policy:Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
170185Engineering Fellowships for Growth: Printed Tactile SKINRavinder DahiyaEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/M002527/1ENG - Electronics & Nanoscale Engineering
301728Engineering Fellowships for Growth: Printed Tactile SKINRavinder DahiyaEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/R029644/1ENG - Electronics & Nanoscale Engineering
190828EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Sensing and MeasurementAndrew HarveyEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/L016753/1P&S - Physics & Astronomy