
Hung-Chih Kan
kan@lps.umd.edu
Born:Nov.10,1966, Taiwan
Education: B.S. Electrophysics (1988), National Chaio-Tung
Univ. Taiwan
Ph.D. Physics (1997), University
of Maryland, College
Park
Current Status : Assistant Research
Scientist, Physics Dept., UMCP
Advisor: R. J. Phaneuf, Materials
(research
group link)
Professional Interests: Structural evolution of semiconductor
surfaces under eptiaxial growth or high temperature
sublimation conditions;
Low energy electron microscopy;
Electron optical simulations;
.
Current Projects :
- Development
of the low energy electron microscope: Low energy electron microscopy
(LEEM) is a powerful tool that allows real time imaging of the evolution
of material surfaces under conditions such as high temperature annealing,
and evaporative growth. We designed and built a low energy electron
microscope at the Laboratory for Physical Sciences[1].
With our LEEM, we have characterized the mirror mode imaging of a
lithographically patterned Si surface[2]. Through
the construction and characterization of the microscope, we also developed
a set of Fortran-based programs to numerically simulate the performance of
individual electron optical elements. With this capability, we were able
to check the performance of the magnetic prism against the simulation[3], which lead to a design of true stigmatic
imaging magnetic prism[4]. We currently continue on fine tuning the
performance of the microscope to improve the image resolution.
- Evolution
of patterned semiconductor surfaces: As the device dimension of integrated
circuits getting smaller down to nanometer scales, the relaxation of the
artificially fabricated microscopic structures during the device
processing procedures and the interaction between the surface defects,
such as steps, and the impurities will have stronger impact on the
performance of the devices. With lithographic tools, we pattern single
crystal semiconductor surfaces with topographic structures or impurity
features whose critical dimensions vary in a combinatorial manner. This
allows us to characterize the size dependence of the evolution of the
surface structures under device processing conditions such as epitaxial
growth and high temperature annealing in ultra-high vacuum environment.
References
1. "Imaging Surface Dynamics in Real
Time with Low Energy Electron Diffraction" (Invited), Raymond J.
Phaneuf and Andreas K. Schmid, Physics Today, in preparation (2003).
- “Focusing of low energy electrons by sub-micrometer patterned
structures in low energy electron microscopy”, H.-C. Kan and R. J.
Phaneuf, J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 19,1158
(2001)
- H.-C. Kan, D. Auerbach, and R. J.
Phaneuf, “A novel approach for investigating the astigmatism of a magnetic
prism in low energy electron microscope”, Rev. Sci.
Instru., in press, 2003.
- H.-C. Kan, T. Dürkop, and R. J.
Phaneuf, “A Comparison of Stigmatically Focusing Magnetic Prisms of Square
vs. Round Symmetries”, J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 20,2519,
(2002)
My Research is funded by the Laboratory for Physical
Sciences and a National Science Foundation Materials Science and Engineering
Center.
(LPS Webpage link) (MRSEC
Webpage link)

