Abstract:
Halo regions are formed for a field effect transistor having a gate structure on a gate dielectric within an active device area of a semiconductor substrate. A first dummy spacer is formed on a first sidewall, and a second dummy spacer is formed on a second sidewall, of the gate structure and the gate dielectric. The first dummy spacer is disposed substantially over a drain extension junction, and the second dummy spacer is disposed substantially over a source extension junction of the field effect transistor. An insulating material is deposited to cover the first dummy spacer, the second dummy spacer, and the gate structure. The insulating material is polished down such that the top surfaces of the gate structure, the first dummy spacer, and the second dummy spacer are exposed and are level with a top surface of the insulating material. The first dummy spacer is etched away to form a first spacer opening, and the second dummy spacer is etched away to form a second spacer opening. A halo dopant is implanted through the first spacer opening to form a drain halo region substantially only beneath the drain extension junction within the semiconductor substrate and through the second spacer opening to form a source halo region substantially only beneath the source extension junction within the semiconductor substrate. The drain halo region and the source halo region are heated up in a thermal anneal process, such as a (LTP) laser thermal process, to activate the halo dopant substantially only within the drain halo region and the source halo region. An amorphization dopant may also be implanted into the drain halo region and the source halo region for activating the halo dopant within the drain and source halo regions at a lower temperature.
Abstract:
For forming a highly conductive junction in an active device area of a semiconductor substrate, a first dopant is implanted into the active device area to form a preamorphization region. A second dopant is then implanted into the preamorphization region to have a dopant profile along a depth of the preamorphization region, and the dopant profile has a dopant peak within the preamorphization region. A RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) is performed to recrystallize a portion of the preamorphization region from an interface between the preamorphization region and the semiconductor substrate to below the dopant peak. A LTP (Laser Thermal Process) is then performed to recrystallize a remaining portion of the preamorphization region that has not been recrystallized during the RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) to activate a substantial portion of the second dopant in the preamorphization region. In this manner, a relatively small portion of junction at the interface of the junction with the semiconductor substrate is recrystallized using a RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) process before the LTP (Laser Thermal Process). The interface of the junction with the semiconductor substrate that is recrystallized using a RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) has a minimized amount of crystallization defects such that the resistance of the junction is minimized. Such a highly conductive junction may be formed as a drain extension, a source extension, a drain contact junction, and a source contact junction of a field effect transistor for minimizing the series resistance at the drain and source of the field effect transistor and thus for enhancing the speed performance of the field effect transistor.
Abstract:
A method of manufacturing an integrated circuit is disclosed herein. The method includes providing an implant in a semiconductor to create an amorphous region; growing a thermal oxide layer on the amorphous region such that the thermal oxide layer consumes a portion of the amorphous region; and removing the thermal oxide layer such that the resulting amorphous region is super-shallow.
Abstract:
A method of fabricating an integrated circuit with a gate structure comprised of an oxide/polysilicon/metal stack. The method includes forming the gate structure by using a metal plug as a hard mask in place of a hard mask produced using photolithography. Thus, linewidth limitations of conventional photolithography do not apply. Specifically, the method includes providing a pattern over a semiconductor substrate; partially filling the pattern with a polysilicon material such that a trench is left in the polysilicon material, and filling the trench in the polysilicon material with metal to form a plug. After forming the materials, excess materials are removed leaving the gate structure.
Abstract:
A field effect transistor is fabricated to have a drain overlap and a source overlap to minimize series resistance between the gate and the drain and between the gate and the source of the field effect transistor. The parasitic Miller capacitance formed by the drain overlap and the source overlap is reduced by forming a depletion region at the sidewalls of the gate structure of the field effect transistor. The depletion region at the sidewalls of the gate structure is formed by counter-doping the sidewalls of the gate structure. The sidewalls of the gate structure at the drain side and the source side of the field effect transistor are doped with a type of dopant that is opposite to the type of dopant within the gate structure. Such dopant at the sidewalls of the gate structure forms a respective depletion region from the sidewall into approximately the edge of the drain overlap and source overlap that extends under the gate structure to reduce the parasitic Miller capacitance formed by the drain overlap and the source overlap.
Abstract:
In a method for fabricating a highly activated shallow abrupt doped junction in a semiconductor substrate, a first dopant is implanted into a predetermined surface of the semiconductor substrate to form a preamorphization junction having a first predetermined depth from the predetermined surface of the semiconductor substrate. Furthermore, a second dopant is implanted into the preamorphization junction with a dopant profile along a depth of the semiconductor substrate from the predetermined surface of the semiconductor substrate. A peak of the dopant profile is located at a fraction of the first predetermined depth of the preamorphization junction. A silicidation RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) is performed to form silicide on the semiconductor substrate. The silicidation RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) recrystallizes the preamorphization junction from the first predetermined depth of the preamorphization junction up to an unrecrystallized depth of the preamorphization junction. The unrecrystallized depth of the preamorphization junction does not reach up to the peak of the dopant profile. An additional RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) is performed to recrystallize the preamorphization junction from the unrecrystallized depth of the preamorphization junction substantially up to the predetermined surface of the semiconductor substrate. The highly activated shallow abrupt doped junction is formed by activation of a substantial portion of the second dopant in the preamorphization junction during the additional RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal).
Abstract:
A semiconductor device with improved short channel characteristics is formed with a buried amorphous region comprising a retrograde impurity region having the impurity concentration peak of the semiconductor substrate. The buried amorphous region, formed below the channel region, suppresses diffusion of displaced atoms and holes from the source/drain regions and reduces the resistance against latch-up phenomenon, thereby improving short channel characteristics.
Abstract:
A shallow doped junction that is part of an integrated circuit device within a semiconductor substrate is formed with box-shaped implant profiles for implantation of the amorphizing implant species and the dopant implant species such that the doped junction has minimized sheet resistance. A box-shaped implant profile for implantation of the amorphizing implant species is formed from implantation of the amorphizing implant species with a plurality of projection ranges to form a plurality of implant profiles. A box-shaped implant profile for implantation of the dopant implant species is formed from implantation of the dopant implant species with a plurality of projection ranges to form a plurality of implant profiles. In addition, each of the plurality of implant profiles for the dopant implant species is preferably below the solid solubility of the dopant implant species within the semiconductor substrate. By controlling the implant profiles of the amorphizing implant species and the dopant implant species during fabrication of the doped junction, the sheet resistance of the doped junction is minimized. In addition, the temperature and the time period for activating the dopant implant species in a RTA (Rapid Thermal Anneal) process is also minimized such that the doped junction remains relatively shallow.
Abstract:
A field effect transistor (FET) is formed on a silicon substrate, with a nitride gate insulator layer being deposited on the substrate and an oxide gate insulator layer being deposited on the nitride layer to insulate a gate electrode from source and drain regions in the substrate. The gate material is then removed to establish a gate void, and spacers are deposited on the sides of the void such that only a portion of the oxide layer is covered by the spacers. Then, the unshielded portion of the oxide layer is removed, thus establishing a step between the oxide and nitride layers that overlays the source and drain extensions under the gate void to reduce subsequent capacitive coupling and charge carrier tunneling between the gate and the extensions. The spacers are removed and the gate void is refilled with gate electrode material.
Abstract:
A method of fabricating an integrated circuit with ultra-shallow source and drain junctions utilizes a damascene process. The substrate is over-etched to form extensions in the source and drain regions. The process can be utilized for P-channel or N-channel metal oxide field semiconductor effect transistors (MOSFETS).