A review of ion beam induced charge microscopy

Since its development in the early 1990’s, ion beam induced charge (IBIC) microscopy has found widespread applications in many microprobe laboratories for the analysis of microelectronic devices, dislocations, semiconductor radiation detectors, semi-insulating materials, high power transistors, charge-coupled arrays, solar cells, light emitting diodes, and in conjunction with Single Event Upset imaging. Several modalities of the techniques have been developed, such as lateral IBIC and time-resolved IBIC. The theoretical model of IBIC generation and collection has developed from a one-dimensional model of charge drift and diffusion to a detailed model of the motion of ion charge carriers in semiconductors and insulators. This paper reviews the current state-of-the-art of IBIC theory and applications.