Electron Channeling Contrast Imaging for the Characterization of Dislocations in III−V Thin Films on Silicon (001)

Characterization of defects is essential for the semiconductor industry, as they can be detrimental to device performance. Electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI) is an electron diffraction technique performed in a scanning electron microscope that has emerged as a fast and nondestructive technique for defect characterization. Herein, ECCI is applied to the characterization of extended defects in the heteroepitaxy of III–V semiconductor thin films on silicon. The influence of the electron‐beam parameters (beam energy and current) is studied to optimize the ECCI micrographs. Additionally, the influence of the diffraction condition on the visibility and contrast of two types of extended defects—threading dislocations and stacking faults—is studied. Moreover, the influence of the diffraction conditions on the density of extended defects measured in the ECCI micrographs is studied, giving a lower limit of the extended defects density. This work shows that ECCI is a promising technique for deep study of extended defects in the heteroepitaxy of III–V semiconductor thin films on Si, revealing a huge potential for wafer mapping, which is crucial for homogeneity testing and scalability.