Electrical Engineering 143 — Microfabrication Technology (4 Units)

Course Overview

Summary

This course is about the processes and parameters for fabrication of integrated circuit devices on silicon wafers, including oxidation, etching, photolithography, deposition, ion implantation, and other processes. It discusses the importance of various parameters and the disadvantages and advantages of specific processes as well of the effect of each parameter on the processes. It also goes over device physics in the last week. This course is more chemistry-based than other EE courses, as it deals with the specific chemistry of altering the chemical and physical properties of silicon wafers on a micro- to nano-scale. This class has a light workload at the beginning, but in the last few weeks it is extremely intensive, as there are two large reports of 20-40 hours each.

Prerequisites

  • Physics 7B
  • EE16B

Suggested to have also taken Chemistry 1A and EE 130.

Topics Covered

  • Introduction to Materials
  • Lithography
  • Etching
  • Thermal Oxidation
  • Thin Film Deposition
  • Ion Implantation
  • Diffusion
  • Metallization
  • CMP
  • Layout
  • Process Integration
  • Device Physics

Workload

Course Work

  • Textbook reading for each unit (1 hour a week)
  • Lab quizzes
  • NO problem sets
  • 2 Lab Reports, one 40 hour, one 20 hour
  • 2 Midterms
  • Final Exam

Time Commitment

  • 1-3 hours a week spent for the first 2/3 of the course
  • Two lab reports requiring 60 hours combined in the last 1/3 of the course

Choosing the Course

When should you take this?

Take this course if you are interested in circuits and devices. You should take this along with or after EE130, but you can also take it after EE40 and Physics 7B, as long as you are committed to the course.

What's next?

  • EE 130
  • EE 105
  • EE 147
  • EE 243

Usefulness for Research or Internships

  • You get to fabricate a complete integrated circuit on a silicon wafer
  • Basically, you are introduced to the process a company such as Intel would go through to fabricate devices
  • It most definitely opens doors for research, especially if you move into EE 243

Additional Comments/Tips

  • GO TO LECTURE, the midterm problems are generally based on questions and specific problems gone over during class
  • Study the advantages/disadvantages of each technique compared with others for the specific process
  • Study the parameters that affect each process
  • Don't take other design courses or courses with huge final/semester-long projects (ex. CS 150) along with this because this is extremely intensive towards the end
  • If you pay attention in class, you will do fine on the midterms and final exams
  • The lab reports may require you to do some outside research

Last Updated: Summer 2020