Four point bending setup for characterization of semiconductor piezoresistance

We present a four point bending setup suitable for high precision characterization of piezoresistance in semiconductors. The compact setup has a total size of 635 cm3. Thermal stability is ensured by an aluminum housing wherein the actual four point bending fixture is located. The four point bending fixture is manufactured in polyetheretherketon and a dedicated silicon chip with embedded piezoresistors fits in the fixture. The fixture is actuated by a microstepper actuator and a high sensitivity force sensor measures the applied force on the fixture and chip. The setup includes heaters embedded in the housing and controlled by a thermocouple feedback loop to ensure characterization at different temperature settings. We present three-dimensional finite element modeling simulations of the fixture and discuss the possible contributions to the uncertainty of the piezoresistance characterization. As a proof of concept, we show measurements of the piezocoefficient pi44 in p-type silicon at three different doping concentrations in the temperature range from T=30 °C to T=80 °C. The extracted piezocoefficients are determined with an uncertainty of 1.8%. ©2008 American Institute of Physics