NIST Releases New Standard for Semiconductor Industry
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released a new standard for the semiconductor industry, specifically targeting the chemical composition of thin-film semiconductor alloys. The new Standard Reference Material (SRM) 2841 is a 1-centimeter square coating, just 3 micrometers thick, made of aluminum, gallium, and arsenic (AlGaAs).
The primary purpose of SRM 2841 is to help measure and control the composition of thin-film semiconductor alloys, which is crucial for optimizing material and device properties. This new standard is expected to increase the accuracy of chemical characterization of AlGaAs films by an order of magnitude over the current state of the art. Improved accuracy will reduce wasteful duplication of reference wafers, increase the free exchange of thin-film materials between vendors and their customers, and ultimately improve the accuracy of data on relationships between material composition and properties.
AlGaAs is used in a variety of applications, including high-speed circuits for wireless communication, semiconductor lasers for optical disk drives, bar code scanning, xerography, and laser surgery, as well as light-emitting diodes for remote controls, traffic lights, and medical instruments. The new NIST standard is expected to have a significant impact on the accuracy and efficiency of these applications.
Source: https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2006/10/nist-releases-new-standard-semiconductor-industry
Keywords: Standardization, Thin-film semiconductor alloys, Chemical composition, Calibration, Metrology
