The present disclosure relates to a non-volatile memory cell, a method of fabricating a non-volatile memory cell, and a memory cell array thereof.
Computer memories are generally categorized into non-volatile and volatile memories. Volatile memories such as DRAMs and SRAMs are usually much faster and more robust but they suffer from the ability to retain information when power is removed. On the other hand, non-volatile such as EEPROM and flash RAM are retain data when power is removed but they are usually slower and have a limited life span.
In the recent years, with the advance of the film formation technique, researches have been extensively made on nonvolatile semiconductor memories using ferroelectric thin films. The ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM) uses ferroelectric capacitors as storage media. The capacitor can be polarized in either positive polarized state or negative polarized state, which represents the data stored therein.
An aspect of the present disclosure provides a non-volatile memory cell. The non-volatile memory cell includes a capacitor which includes a top electrode, a bottom electrode, a ferroelectric layer disposed between the top electrode and the bottom electrode, and an amorphous layer disposed between the top electrode and the bottom electrode, wherein an atomic arrangement of the amorphous layer is different from an atomic arrangement of the top electrode and the bottom electrode.
In some embodiments, the amorphous layer is formed by an atomic layer deposition process, and a thickness of the amorphous layer is in a range from 0.5 nm to 5 nm.
In some embodiments, a memory window of the non-volatile memory cell is greater than or equal to 0.2 V.
In some embodiments, the amorphous layer is disposed between the ferroelectric layer and the bottom electrode.
In some embodiments, the capacitor further includes an additional amorphous layer disposed between the ferroelectric layer and the top electrode.
In some embodiments, the amorphous layer is disposed between the ferroelectric layer and the top electrode.
In some embodiments, the non-volatile memory cell further includes a transistor, an interlayer dielectric layer disposed on the transistor, and a conductive via disposed in the interlayer dielectric layer to couple the transistor to the capacitor.
In some embodiments, the bottom electrode is protruded from the interlayer dielectric layer, and a bottom of the bottom electrode is surrounded by a dielectric layer.
In some embodiments, the amorphous layer, the ferroelectric layer, and the top electrode are disposed on sidewalls and a top surface of the bottom electrode.
In some embodiments, the bottom electrode comprises a plurality of protrusions, the amorphous layer, the ferroelectric layer, and the top electrode are disposed on sidewalls and top surfaces of the protrusions, and a space between the protrusions is filled by the top electrode.
In some embodiments, a material of the top electrode and the bottom electrode comprises TIN, Ti, W, or Si.
In some embodiments, a material of the amorphous layer comprises TIN, Ti, Si, or SiO2.
Another aspect of the disclosure provides a method of fabricating a ferroelectric non-volatile memory cell. The method includes forming a bottom electrode by performing a first deposition process; forming an amorphous layer on the bottom electrode by performing a second deposition process that is different from the first deposition process such that an atomic arrangement of the amorphous layer is different from an atomic arrangement of the bottom electrode; forming a ferroelectric layer on the bottom electrode; and forming a top electrode on the amorphous layer and the ferroelectric layer.
In some embodiments, a memory window of the non-volatile memory cell is greater than or equal to 0.2 V.
In some embodiments, the second deposition process is an atomic layer deposition process, and a thickness of the amorphous layer is in a range from 0.5 nm to 5 nm.
In some embodiments, the first deposition process is performed such that atomic layers of the bottom electrode are crystallized, and the second deposition process is performed such that atomic layers of the amorphous layer are not substantially crystallized.
In some embodiments, the method further includes performing a planarization process to the bottom electrode before the forming the amorphous layer and the forming the ferroelectric layer.
Yet another aspect of the disclosure provides a memory cell array. The memory cell array includes a plurality of bit lines arranged in a first direction, a plurality of word lines arranged in a second direction, a plurality of select lines, and a plurality of memory cells. Each of the memory cells includes a transistor and a capacitor coupled to the transistor. The capacitors are coupled between the bit lines and the select lines, respectively. Each of the capacitors includes a top electrode, a bottom electrode, a ferroelectric layer disposed between the top electrode and the bottom electrode, and an amorphous layer disposed between the top electrode and the bottom electrode. An atomic arrangement of the amorphous layer is different from an atomic arrangement of the top electrode and the bottom electrode.
In some embodiments, the select lines are arranged in the first direction, and the select lines and the bit lines are alternately arranged.
In some embodiments, the select lines are arranged in the second direction, and the select lines and the word lines are alternately arranged.
According to some embodiments of the disclosure, a non-volatile memory cell includes a capacitor is provided. The capacitor includes a top electrode, a bottom electrode, a ferroelectric layer between the top electrode and the bottom electrode, and one or more amorphous layers between the top electrode and the bottom electrode. The atomic arrangement of the amorphous layer is different from the atomic arrangement of the top electrode and the bottom electrode. The remnant polarization (2Pr) of the capacitor can be increased by inserting the amorphous layer between the top electrode and the bottom electrode, and a memory window of the non-volatile memory cell is increased accordingly.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are by examples, and are intended to provide further explanation of the disclosure as claimed.
The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure. In the drawings,
Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.
Ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM) is a nonvolatile semiconductor memory which allows high speed rewriting by making use of high-speed polarization reversal and its residual polarization of a ferroelectric thin film. As shown in
The memory window is an important factor to the programming voltage of the FeRAM cell. The memory window is represented as (2Pr×A)/CBL. In which 2Pr is remnant polarization, A is the area between top electrode and bottom electrode, and CBL is capacitance to bit line. In order to increase the memory window of FeRAM cell, a large remnant polarization (2Pr) is preferred in the present disclosure.
Reference is made to
The remnant polarization of the capacitor 100 can be increased by inserting the amorphous layer 140 between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120.
More particularly, the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120 are formed by a first deposition process, and the amorphous layer 140 is formed by a second deposition process that is different from the first deposition process. For example, in some embodiments, the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120 can be formed by a physical vapor deposition (PVD) process. The thickness of the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120 is thick enough thereby presenting obvious crystallization of the atomic layers of the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120. For example, the thickness of the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120 is greater than 10 nm.
On the other hand, the amorphous layer 140 is formed by an atomic layer deposition (ALD) process such as a plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) process, therefore, the thickness of the amorphous layer 140 is really thin such as in a range from 0.5 nm to 5 nm, and the atomic layers of the amorphous layer 140 are not substantially crystallized. In some embodiments, if the thickness of the amorphous layer 140 is greater than 5 nm the atomic layers of the amorphous layer 140 may be crystallized, the function of increasing remnant polarization of the capacitor 100 is failed.
In some embodiments, the material of the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 120 can be TIN, Ti, W, Si, etc. In some embodiments, the material of the ferroelectric layer 130 can be HZO, HfO2 based ferroelectric material, ZrO2 based ferroelectric material, etc. In some embodiments, the material of the amorphous layer 140 can be TIN, Ti, Si, SiO2, etc. In some embodiments, the first electrode 110, the second electrode 120, and the amorphous layer 140 respectively have different materials. In some embodiments, at least two the first electrode 110, the second electrode 120, and the amorphous layer 140 have the same materials with different atomic arrangements.
In some embodiments, the first electrode 110 serves as a bottom electrode of the capacitor 100, the second electrode 120 serves as a top electrode of the capacitor 100, and the amorphous layer 140 is disposed between the first electrode 110 and the ferroelectric layer 130.
In some other embodiments, as shown in
In some other embodiments, as shown in
Reference is made to
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
In some other embodiments, the ferroelectric material layer 260 is deposited on the bottom electrode material layer 240, the amorphous material layer 250 is deposited on the ferroelectric material layer 260, and the top electrode material layer 270 is deposited on the amorphous material layer 250. In yet some other embodiments, the series of deposition processes further include depositing an additional amorphous material layer (not shown) such that the amorphous material layers are respectively formed between the bottom electrode material layer 240 and the ferroelectric material layer 260 and between the ferroelectric material layer 260 and the top electrode material layer 270.
In some embodiments, the material of the amorphous material layer 250 can be TiN, Ti, Si, SiO2, etc. The amorphous material layer 250 is formed by an ALD process such as a PEALD process, therefore, the thickness of the amorphous material layer 250 is in a range from 0.5 nm to 5 nm, and the atomic layers of amorphous material layer 250 are not substantially crystallized.
In some embodiments, the material of the ferroelectric material layer 260 can be HZO, HfO2 based ferroelectric material, ZrO2 based ferroelectric material, etc. The deposition process of forming the ferroelectric material layer 260 can be chemical vapor deposition process, and the thickness of the ferroelectric material layer 260 is in a range from 5 nm to 50 nm.
In some embodiments, the material of the top electrode material layer 270 can be TIN, Ti, W, Si, etc. The deposition process of forming the top electrode material layer 270 can be physical vapor deposition process, and the thickness of the top electrode material layer 270 is greater than 10 nm.
Due to the different deposition processes and thicknesses, the atomic arrangement of the amorphous material layer 250 is different from the atomic arrangement of the bottom electrode material layer 240 or the top electrode material layer 270. More particularly, the atomic arrangement of the amorphous material layer 250 is not substantially crystalized, and the atomic arrangement of the bottom electrode material layer 240 or the top electrode material layer 270 is substantially crystalized.
Finally, as shown in
Reference is made to
The structure 2 is an advanced capacitor including a bottom electrode, a top electrode, and a ferroelectric layer between the top and bottom electrodes, in which the bottom electrode is planarized by a CMP process. The top and bottom electrodes of the capacitor of structure 2 are TiN, and the ferroelectric layers of the capacitor of structure 2 are HZO.
The structure 3 is an embodiment of the capacitor of the present disclosure which includes a bottom electrode, a top electrode, and a ferroelectric layer between the top and bottom electrodes, and an amorphous layer between the ferroelectric layer and the bottom electrode, in which the bottom electrode is also planarized by a CMP process. The top and bottom electrodes of the capacitor of structure 3 are TiN, and the ferroelectric layers of the capacitor of structure 3 are HZO. The amorphous layer of the capacitor of structure 3 is a TiN formed by a PEALD process, and the thickness thereof is about 5 Å.
According to the test result, in which the remnant polarization values are average value of 10 dies, the remnant polarization value of the capacitor of structure 1 is about 20 μC/cm2, the remnant polarization value of the capacitor of structure 2 is about 26 μC/cm2, and the remnant polarization value of the capacitor of structure 3 is about 31 μC/cm2.
In the non-volatile memory cell of the present disclosure, one or more amorphous layers are inserted between the top electrode and the bottom electrode of the capacitor to increasing the remnant polarization value of the capacitor such that the memory window of the non-volatile memory cell is greater than or equal to 0.2V, which is benefit to the programming voltage of the non-volatile memory cell.
Reference is made to
The non-volatile memory cell 300 further includes a capacitor 340 disposed on the interlayer dielectric layer 330 and electrically coupling to the S/D region 326 of the transistor 322 through the conductive via 324. In some embodiments, the capacitor 340 includes a bottom electrode 350 connected to the conductive via 324. The bottom electrode 350 is a conductive piece and is protruded from the interlayer dielectric layer 330. The capacitor 340 further includes one or more amorphous layers 360, a ferroelectric layer 370, and a top electrode 380. Example of the laminations of the one or more amorphous layers 360 and the ferroelectric layer 370 between the bottom electrode 350 and the top electrode 380 can be referred to
In some embodiments, the amorphous layer 360 is disposed on and in contact with sidewalls and a top surface of the bottom electrode 350. The amorphous layer 360 is further extended above the transistor 322. A dielectric layer 332 is interposed between the amorphous layer 360 and interlayer dielectric layer 330, and a bottom of the bottom electrode 350 is surrounded by the dielectric layer 332. The ferroelectric layer 370 is disposed on the amorphous layer 360, and the top electrode 380 is disposed on ferroelectric layer 370. More particularly, the amorphous layer 360, the ferroelectric layer 370, and the top electrode 380 are formed lining the top surface and sidewalls of the bottom electrode 350 and the top surface of the dielectric layer 332. The non-volatile memory cell 300 further includes an additional interlayer dielectric layer 390 formed on the capacitor 340 to seal the capacitor 340.
The area between the bottom electrode 350 and top electrode 380 includes the area of the top surface of the bottom electrode 350 and the area of the sidewalls of the bottom electrode 350. Comparing to the embodiments as disclosed in
Reference is made to
For example, the bottom electrode 350A is patterned as a comb having a plurality of protrusions 352, the amorphous layer 360 and the ferroelectric layer 370 are disposed lining the sidewalls and the top surfaces of the protrusions 352 of the bottom electrode 350A, and top electrode 380 is formed on the amorphous layer 360 and the ferroelectric layer 370. In some embodiments, the top electrode 380 is deposited thicker such that the top electrode 380 fills the space(s) between the protrusions 352 of the bottom electrode 350A.
In some other embodiments, the top electrode 380 is also formed lining the sidewalls and the top surface of the bottom electrode 350A, and the space(s) between the protrusions 352 of the bottom electrode 350A is filled by an additional dielectric layer such that the top electrode 380 on different protrusions 352 would not be merged.
Reference is made to
The capacitor 410 is coupled between the bit line BL and the select line SL. The voltage of the capacitor 410 is the voltage difference between the select line SL and the bit line BL when the word line WL is enabled. The bit lines BLs such as BL1, BL2, . . . are arranged in a first direction such as X-direction, and the word lines WLs such as WL1, WL2, . . . are arranged in a second direction such as Y-direction that is perpendicular to the first direction.
In some embodiments, as illustrated in
In some other embodiments, as illustrated in
According to some embodiments of the disclosure, a non-volatile memory cell includes a capacitor is provided. The capacitor includes a top electrode, a bottom electrode, a ferroelectric layer between the top electrode and the bottom electrode, and one or more amorphous layers between the top electrode and the bottom electrode. The atomic arrangement of the amorphous layer is different from the atomic arrangement of the top electrode and the bottom electrode. The remnant polarization (2Pr) of the capacitor can be increased by inserting the amorphous layer between the top electrode and the bottom electrode. The memory window of the non-volatile memory cell is increased accordingly.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present disclosure without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present disclosure cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.