Abstract: A vacuum processing system for processing semiconductor wafers includes a particle shield (16) disposed above the wafer (10) to block moving particles in a vacuum chamber which would otherwise contact the wafer (10). The particle shield (16) is attached to arm (18), allowing the particle shield (16) to be moved away from the wafer or photomask during processing.

Abstract: Disclosed is a substitutionally strengthened silicon semiconductor material. A high concentration of germanium atoms is added to a silicon melt to thereby substitutionally displace various silicon atoms throughout the crystalline structure. The germanium atoms, being larger than the silicon atoms, block crystalline dislocations and thus localize such dislocations so that a fault line does not spread throughout the crystalline structure. In heavily boron doped P+ silicon substrates, the larger germanium atoms offset the crystalline shrinkage caused by the boron atoms, thereby equilibrating the silicon crystal size.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a method for producing single crystal silicon from a polycrystalline silicon melt wherein dopants such as oxygen and nitrogen are uniformly distributed in the crystal both along the crystal axis and radially therefrom. This is accomplished by identifying the correct species in the melt and above the melt and determining the thermochemical equilibrium between the two chemical species which lead to a change of the composition of the silicon single crystal during the entire growth process. This approach effectively circumvents the segregation coefficient during the growth process through the control of the concentration of the dopants in the melt.