Abstract: Provided are the methods of evaluating thermal treatment. In the methods, a wafer comprising a silicon substrate having an oxygen concentration of approximately equal to or less than 1.0×1018 atoms/cm3 and a silicon epitaxial layer on at least one surface of the substrate is employed.

Abstract: This method for assaying copper in silicon wafers includes the steps of: forming a polysilicon layer on the surface of a p-type silicon wafer having the same characteristics as the silicon wafers being assayed; heat treating the p-type silicon wafer after it has been polished; dissolving the polysilicon layer on the heat-treated p-type silicon wafer with a mixed acid composed of at least hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid; and quantitatively determining the copper components within the mixed acid following dissolution of the polysilicon layer.

Abstract: This method for analyzing impurity includes: a step of immersing each of sets of two evaluation silicon wafers into a washing solution, thereby contaminating the evaluation silicon wafers to be in a same state of contamination; a step of dissolving each of a surface layer portion of either one of the evaluation silicon wafers and a bulk portion of the other evaluation silicon wafer with solutions including hydrofluoric acid respectively, and measuring a concentration of impurities included in each of the solutions; a step of determining a calibration curve that shows a relation between the concentrations of the impurities in the surface layer portions and the concentrations of the impurities in the bulk portions of the evaluation silicon wafers; a step of dissolving a surface layer portion of a silicon wafer of a test object with a solution including hydrofluoric acid, and measuring a concentration of impurities included in the solution; and a step of determining a concentration of impurities in a bulk portio

Abstract: A method for analyzing impurities present in a silicon substrate. The method includes the steps of accommodating a silicon substrate resting on a support, and a solution for decomposing a silicon substrate which comprises a mixture of hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid and sulfuric acid, in an air-tight reaction vessel, in such a way as to keep the silicon substrate from directly contacting with the decomposing solution; allowing the decomposing solution to vaporize, thereby causing the substrate to decompose through vapor-phase reaction for sublimation, without heating or pressurizing the reaction vessel; and recovering the residue left by the decomposed substrate, to analyze the impurities contained in the substrate. This method makes it possible to determine the content of impurities that are present in a silicon substrate extremely precisely in a comparatively short time by decomposing the substrate through vapor-phase reaction without resorting to heating or pressurization.

Abstract: The method of this invention for analyzing impurities present in a silicon substrate comprises the steps of accommodating a silicon substrate resting on a support, and a solution for decomposing a silicon substrate which comprises a mixture of hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid and sulfuric acid, in an air-tight reaction vessel, in such a way as to keep the silicon substrate from directly contacting with the decomposition solution; allowing the decomposing solution to vaporize, thereby causing the substrate to decompose through vapor-phase reaction for sublimation, without heating or pressurizing the reaction vessel; and recovering the residue left by the decomposed substrate, to analyze the impurities contained in the substrate. This method makes it possible to determine highly precisely the content of impurities present in a silicon substrate in a comparatively short time by decomposing the substrate through vapor-phase reaction without resorting to heating or pressurization.