Aluminum etching, corrosion

Aluminum is often used as an alloy with a few atomic % Si and/or Cu to reduce electromigration (Fig. 1). This alloy is difficult to etch because copper does not form readily volatile compounds [73]. Fleating of the wafer to some 200 °C and intense ion bombardment to sputter off involatile products are then necessary to effect etching. Residual chlorine remaining on the wafer after aluminum etching can be deleterious because it can promote corrosion, especially in Al-Cu alloys. Hence wafer rinsing with DI water is common. Dry passivation by exposure to a fluorocarbon plasma has... 

CEMENT, PORTLAND. While in the fluid state, Portland cement causes etching of aluminum alloys as indicated in laboratory tests and in service applications. After the cement has set, no further corrosion occurs as a result of a protective film forming on the aluminum. Galvanic corrosion will develop If aluminum is coupled to dissimilar metals in cement or concrete to which chlorides have been added for high early strength. Aluminum alloys have been used for freight cars, hopper cars, and tote bins handling cement. Aluminum has also been used successfully for racks and pallets in the concrete block industry, molds and forms, and terrazzo divider strips. See also Ref (Dp. 129, (2) p. 161, (3) p. 228. 

ALkylamines are corrosive to copper, copper-containing alloys (brass), aluminum, 2inc, 2inc alloy, and galvani2ed surfaces. Aqueous solutions of aLkylamines slowly etch glass as a consequence of the basic properties of the amines in water. Carbon or stainless steel vessels and piping have been used satisfactorily for handling aLkylamines and, as noted above, some aLkylamines can act as corrosion inhibitors in boiler appHcations. 

Hydrogen fluoride Catalyst in some petroleum refining, etching glass, silicate extraction by-product in electrolytic production of aluminum Petroleum, primary metals, aluminum Strong irritant and corrosive action on all body tissue damage to citrus plants, effect on teeth and bones of cattle from eating plants... 

Metals such as aluminium, steel, and titanium are the primary adherends used for adhesively bonded structure. They are never bonded directly to a polymeric adhesive, however. A protective oxide, either naturally occurring or created on the metal surface either through a chemical etching or anodization technique is provided for corrosion protection. The resultant oxide has a morphology distinct from the bulk and a surface chemistry dependent on the conditions used to form the oxide 39). Studies on various aluminum alloy compositions show that while the oxide composition is invariant with bulk composition, the oxide surface contains chemical species that are characteristic of the base alloy and the anodization bath40 42). 

To protect the aluminum joint from the effects of the environment, especially water and corrosion, an artificially thickened oxide layer is generally formed on the surface. Historically, chemical etching as a surface preparation has provided the surest way of obtaining durable adhesive bonds with aluminum. 

The usual approach to good bonding practice is to prepare the aluminum surface as thoroughly as possible, then wet it with the adhesive as soon afterward as practical. In any event, aluminum parts should ordinarily be bonded within 48 h after surface preparation. However, in certain applications this may not be practical, and primers are used to protect the surface between the time of treatment and the time of bonding. Primers are also applied as a low-viscosity solution which wets a metal surface more effectively than more viscous, higher-solids-content adhesives. Corrosion-resistant epoxy primers are often used to protect the etched surface during assembly operations. Primers for epoxy adhesive systems are described in Chap. 10. 

Hydrofluoric acid — (HF) A solution of hydrogen fluoride in water. The pure hydrogen fluoride is characterized by Mw of 20.0063 gmol-1 m.p. -83.55 °C (1 atm) b.p. 19.5 °C (latm). When concentrated, this colorless fuming liquid is extremely corrosive and can dissolve almost all inorganic oxides such as silicate compounds or oxides of metals like stainless steel, aluminum, and uranium however, it can be stored in casted iron bottles because a corrosion-resistant iron fluoride layer protects the metal. It is used for several purposes such as the preparation of titanium oxide nano tube arrays [i], silicon nanoparticles [ii] and electrochemical etching of silicon [iii], electrochemical deposition of lithium [iv], etc. 

The first generation of the interconnect material is aluminum with a resistivity of p = 2.66 pQ cm. One approach to reduce RC delay is to switch to an interconnect material with lower resistivity as indicated by Eq. (1.1). A wide range of metals was considered as a potential candidate in the early 1990s. Gold has excellent resistance to corrosion and electromigration but its conductivity is similar to that of aluminum. Silver has the lowest resistivity (p = 1.59 pQ cm) but poor resistance to corrosion and electromigration. Hence, copper that has a resistivity of 1.67 pO cm and excellent resistance to electromigration was selected. Compared to aluminum, copper has one drawback. It cannot be deposited by RIE. Therefore, a copper interconnect is typically formed via a damascene process in which a pattern is first etched into the dielectric and overfilled with copper. The excess copper above the... 

Corrosion. Aluminum is a not a noble metal and is attacked by both alkali and acidic solutions. Because of the presence of a surface A1203 film, the metal is protected against corrosion [Diggle et al.136, Borgmann et al.137]. This oxide film, however, is easily penetrated, for instance, by the presence of chlorine ions which remain in the resist after a chlorine based plasma etch. Also, the presence of Cu in the aluminum weakens the corrosion resistance of the alloy by the presence of an unfavorable electrochemical couple (A1/Cu2+). 

The anodizing process consists of 1) trim forming, 2) cleaning, 3) anodic electrolysis usually in sulfuric acid and, 4) sealing in an aqueous bath. Each of these steps are important, for example, the anodized oxide layer must be controlled to provide an optimum thickness. Sealing the anodized layer is also very important and must be complete. Corrosion problems associated with anodized aluminum trim include etching of the oxide film (known as "blush and bloom ) and pitting of the aluminum. 

In automotive sensors, aluminum bonding pads are the obvious choice they can be used for bonding both aluminum and gold wires, and the bonding quality is sufficiently good for the lifetime of the device. However, for surface-microma-chined structures, special care has to be taken regarding the bonding pads to prevent corrosion when the sacrificial oxide is etched. 

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