AQUEOUS SOLUTION-BASED INORGANIC THIN FILM
PROCESSING
CH 610 / PHYS 610, LATE SUMMER 2011
Instructors:
Chris Knutson
Lena Trotochaud
Email: knutchri@onid.orst.edu
Email: lenat@uoregon.edu
ed.csmc.msi@gmail.com
Course Password: UOCAMCOR
Location
The course will meet in the CAMCOR conference room at 9:00 AM, M-F
from 9/12 to 9/23
During the semester, the course will meet Thursday evenings at ____________
Overview
During this course, participants will directly apply the transformative approaches to the
preparation and application of inorganic thin films currently being developed in the Center
for Green Materials Chemistry. The cutting edge nature of the course topic is reflected in
the non-standard course format and objectives. As opposed to pre-prepared lectures from
the instructors, all participants will meet together daily to present and discuss progress,
issues, and potential solutions regarding the tasks at hand. As opposed to pre-determined
laboratory exercises, approaches to lab tasks will be dictated by group decisions. In these
respects, the activities are more representative of an actual research environment, which is
also reflected in the objective for this course.
Course objective: Draft manuscript for publication in a scientific journal on
the fabrication and characterization of novel thin films by employing aqueous
solution deposition.
Class Format
The class will be divided into groups for execution of laboratory tasks. At the beginning of
each daily group meeting, one member from each group will briefly (10 to 15 minutes)
discuss the approaches and outcomes from the previous day’s laboratory activities. These
presentations will be followed by group discussion to stimulate ideas for problem solving as
well as plans for that afternoon’s laboratory tasks.
Participants will be expected to independently generate solutions to challenges encountered
during the execution of the project. This will invariably involve the design and
implementation of systematic experiments to test solutions to processing challenges, as well
independent study of relevant literature.
Class Project
This year’s class is organized around generating tungsten oxide films from an
environmentally benign method of dissolving tungsten. We will be generating new thin
films via the new methods being developed by the center. We will thoroughly characterize
the films produced and test some possible applications of the films.
Key Literature
[1] A. Telecky, P. Xie, J. Stowers, A. Grenville, B. Smith, and D. A. Keszler, “Photopatternable
inorganic hardmask,” Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology B: Microelectronics and
Nanometer Structures, vol. 28, no. 6, p. C6S19, 2010.
[2] K. Jiang, J. T. Anderson, K. Hoshino, D. Li, J. F. Wager, and D. A. Keszler, “Low-Energy
Path to Dense HfO2 Thin Films with Aqueous Precursor,” Chemistry of Materials, vol. 23,
no. 4, pp. 945-952, Jan. 2011.
[3] H. F. Okorn-Schmidt, “Characterization of silicon surface preparation processes for
advanced gate dielectrics,” IBM Journal of Research and Development, vol. 43, no. 3, pp.
351-365, 1999.
[4] Z. L. Mensinger, J. T. Gatlin, S. T. Meyers, L. N. Zakharov, D. A. Keszler, and D. W.
Johnson, “Synthesis of Heterometallic Group 13 Nanoclusters and Inks for Oxide Thin-Film
Transistors,” Angewandte Chemie, vol. 120, no. 49, pp. 9626-9628, Nov. 2008.
[5] J. T. Anderson et al., “Solution-Processed HafSOx and ZircSOx Inorganic Thin-Film
Dielectrics and Nanolaminates,” Advanced Functional Materials, vol. 17, no. 13, pp. 21172124, Sep. 2007.
[6] S. T. Meyers, J. T. Anderson, D. Hong, C. M. Hung, J. F. Wager, and D. A. Keszler,
“Solution-Processed Aluminum Oxide Phosphate Thin-Film Dielectrics,” Chemistry of
Materials, vol. 19, no. 16, pp. 4023-4029, Aug. 2007.
Suggested Reading
1. Mitzi, D. B. Solution Processing of Inorganic Materials; Wiley: Hoboken, New Jersey, 2009.
2. D.C. Johnson, D.W. Johnson, J.F. Wager, and D.A Keszler, “Green Semiconductor
Manufacturing – Potential New Routes Using Aqueous Solution Chemistry,” Proceedings of
the CS MANTECH Conference, May 17th-20th, 2010, Portland, Oregon, USA.
Day Topic
9-12
9-13
9-14
9-15
9-16
9-19
9-20
9-21
9-22
Assigned Primary Lab Tasks
Reading
Common devices and current materials
[1],
processing:
[2]
 Wafer preparation
 Deposition
 CAMCOR capabilities
Guest speaker: Dr. Dave Johnson
Photopatterning oxide materials, and the [3]
effect on device sizes
Guest speaker: Alan Telecky
Discussion: Best practice methods for
preparing wafers
Discussion: Early findings about films
and deposition
Discussion: Characterization
Techniques Presentations
Discussion: Other methods of
generating clusters in solution
Discussion: Non-thickness data
generation and presentation
Discussion: Writing
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[4]
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[5]
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[6]
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9-23
9-26
Discussion: Writing
9-27
9-28
Discussion: Writing
9-29
9-30
Final Exam
10-1 until the end
of semester
Group Meetings
Assignments
Form Teams
Assess equipment &
chemicals
Attain Training
X-ray certification
Standardization of reagents
Generation of solution
precursors
Standardizing wafer
preparation
Initial depositions of films

Generate thickness vs. molar
concentration curves for
designated molarities
Tech transfer
Make sure each group’s
curves are within tolerance
of eachother
Standardize until thickness
characterization is congruent
Collect non-thickness data
Work up data collected
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A draft of paper in
submission
Find literature examples:
o good figures
o bad figures
Find literature examples:
 Group VI peroxide
complexes
 Transition metal
peroxide complexes
Read and mark classgenerated paper
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Chemical ordering
assignment
Pick a characterization
technique to present to the
class in 10-15 slides
o Presentations are on
Friday 9/16
Generate Recipes for specific
molarities of solutions
Generate first solutions and
samples
Get certification on pertinent
equipment
Do your reading, there will be
a quiz on 9-26
Thickness vs. concentration
profiles DUE 9/23
Start Google Document
Begin writing
o organize
bibliographic
management
o choose format &
journal
o Compile data
Collect nonthickness
data
Work up
data
collected
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Continue writing
o organize
bibliographic
management
o choose format &
journal
o Compile data
o Write Sections
Collect data
Work up
data
collected
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Complete the journalquality contribution.