1. Field of the Invention
Generally, the present invention relates to the field of manufacturing integrated circuits, and, more particularly, to a semiconductor device, such as a field effect transistor, having an improved retrograde dopant profile in a channel region of the transistor element, and a method of manufacturing such a semiconductor device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Field effect transistors, such as MOS transistors, represent one of the most frequently used circuit elements in modern integrated circuits. Typically, a huge number of field effect transistors is simultaneously formed on an appropriate substrate and are connected to provide the required functionality of the circuit. Generally, a field effect transistor comprises two highly doped semiconductor regions, commonly silicon regions, that are also referred to as drain and source regions, and which are embedded in a lightly and inversely doped semiconductor region, the so-called N-well or P-well, depending on the type of transistor to be formed. The drain and source regions are spaced apart with a channel region interposed, wherein a conductive channel forms between the drain and source regions in the channel region upon application of an appropriate voltage to a gate electrode that is usually formed over the channel region and is separated therefrom by a gate insulation layer, often provided as a gate oxide layer.
As feature sizes of the individual semiconductor elements are steadily decreasing, for example, the distance between the source and drain regions (also referred to as the channel length) represents a critical dimension in this respect, device performance increases. However, these changes present new challenges to be overcome by process engineers so as to develop new processes and techniques compatible with the decreased feature sizes that do not partially offset the improvements obtained by decreasing the feature sizes. For instance, reducing the channel length generally requires the reduction of the thickness of the gate insulation layer so that the formation of the conductive channel remains sufficiently controllable by the applied gate voltage. Forming a gate insulation layer of a few nanometers in thickness, as is typical for sophisticated MOS transistors, therefore requires an advanced process technology to minimize any lattice damage in the semiconductor region underlying the gate insulation layer so as to allow formation of a high quality gate insulation layer, such as an oxide layer, for guaranteeing a high degree of reliability of the device over the whole operating life. Moreover, only a relatively intact semiconductor region allows the formation of a gate insulation layer having a relatively smooth interface with the semiconductor material so that scattering events of charge carriers are minimized.
A reduction of the channel length in modern devices leads to an improved conductivity. However, in some cases, it may be desirable to further improve the conductivity by enhancing carrier mobility in the channel region without excessively decreasing the channel length. Accordingly, in modern devices, a so-called retrograde channel doping profile is contemplated. As is well known, dopant atoms in the semiconductor lattice may represent scattering centers for charge carriers moving under the influence of an electrical field prevailing in the semiconductor region. Therefore, in modern devices, the retrograde channel dopant profile may be used, that is, the concentration of dopants increases from the gate insulation layer to the areas located deeper down the channel region, so that charge carriers forming the conductive channel essentially in the vicinity of the gate insulation layer encounter a relatively low concentration of scattering centers so that the overall conductivity in the channel is enhanced. A retrograde channel dopant profile, however, is very difficult to obtain as will be detailed in the following by referring to
a shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a semiconductor element 100 at an early manufacturing stage. The semiconductor element 100 is illustrated in this example as a complementary MOS transistor pair, wherein a semiconductor region 101, such as a silicon region, a shallow trench isolation 102, for example comprising silicon dioxide, is formed to separate an N-well structure 120 and a P-well structure 110. In the N-well structure 120, implanted, i.e., doped, portions are indicated by 121, 122, 123 and 124, and correspondingly, in the P-well structure 110, implanted portions 111, 112, 113 and 114 are illustrated. The implantation portions 111, 121 located lowest in the N-well structure 120 and the P-well structure 110 are also referred to as buried implants. The implanted portions 112, 122 are commonly known as fill implants, whereas the implanted portions 113, 123 are usually referred to as punch-through implants. The implanted portions 114, 124 are also called VT implants, wherein VT indicates the threshold voltage of the transistor elements to be formed.
A typical process flow for forming the semiconductor device 100 shown in
a is a graph, in which the dopant concentration of the N-well structure 120 and the P-well structure 110 is depicted with respect to the depth in the respective well structures. In particular, it is evident from
After defining the P-well structure 110 and the N-well structure 120 by ion implantation, the semiconductor device 100 has to be subjected to a heat treatment so as to activate the implanted ions, that is, to locate the majority of the ions at lattice sites, and to cure any lattice damage caused by the ion bombardment. Unfortunately, during this heat treatment, an inevitable diffusion takes place and the boundaries between the respective implantation portions will smear out more intensively so that the vertical dopant profile within the P-well structure 110 and the N-well structure 120 will become more indefinite.
b shows a corresponding graph with a typical dopant profile with respect to the depth of the respective well structure. Due to the up-diffusion of the dopant atoms during the heat treatment, the initially retrograde profile in the vicinity of the surface of the semiconductor device 100, as indicated by reference number 200, may have become substantially uniformly distributed.
b schematically shows the semiconductor device 100 in an advanced manufacturing stage. In
Typically, the N-channel transistor 130 and the P-channel transistor 140 are formed by the following processes. After the heat treatment, the gate insulation layer 135 is formed, wherein the gate insulation layer may be deposited by chemical vapor deposition (CVD), or, if an oxide layer is used, a rapid thermal furnace process or a conventional furnace oxidation process may be used. Since, commonly, elevated temperatures are involved in fabricating the gate insulation layer 135, this process also contributes to a further diffusion of the dopants within the P-well structure 110 and the N-well structure 120. Thereafter, polysilicon is deposited and patterned by sophisticated photolithography techniques to form the gate electrodes 134 and 144. With a first implantation, the extensions 132 and 142 are defined, and, subsequently, the spacer elements 133, 143 are formed and serve as an implantation mask during a subsequent implantation process for defining the source and drain regions 131, 141. Since a further heat treatment is necessary to activate the dopants within the regions 131, 132 and 141, 142 and to cure any crystal damage caused by the preceding implantation steps, the initial dopant concentration, as shown in
According to the difficulties involved in obtaining or maintaining a retrograde dopant profile in the channel region of a field effect transistor caused by the conventional process flow, there is a strong need for an improved method for forming semiconductor devices exhibiting a retrograde dopant profile.
The present invention is generally directed to a method for forming a semiconductor device including a retrograde dopant profile, wherein a substantially mono-crystalline channel layer is formed after a well structure has been defined by ion implantation in a semiconductor region. Since the ion implantation, as well as the subsequent heat treatment processes, are performed prior to the formation of the channel layer, which will substantially accommodate the channel region of the semiconductor device to be formed, diffusion of dopant atoms from the well structure into the channel layer is significantly reduced. Since the channel layer may be undoped or merely lightly doped, a substantially retrograde dopant profile in this channel layer may be maintained throughout the following process steps, thereby ensuring improved device characteristics in terms of enhanced carrier mobility and improved quality of the gate insulation layer due to a reduced dopant concentration at the interface to the underlying channel layer.
According to one illustrative embodiment of the present invention, a method of forming a retrograde dopant profile in a channel region of a field effect transistor comprises forming a well structure formed in a substrate and epitaxially growing a channel layer over the well structure. Moreover, a gate insulation layer followed by a gate electrode are formed on the channel layer. Additionally, the method includes forming a drain and source region in the well structure, wherein the channel region is located therebetween.
In a further embodiment of the present invention, a method of selectively forming a retrograde dopant profile in a semiconductor region formed on a substrate comprises forming a first well structure in a first portion of the semiconductor region and forming a second well structure in a second portion of the semiconductor region. Moreover, a mask layer is formed over the second well structure and a channel layer is selectively epitaxially grown over the first well structure, wherein the mask layer prevents the growth of the channel layer on the second well structure.
According to a further embodiment of the present invention, a semiconductor device comprises a transistor element that comprises a well structure formed in a substrate and a diffusion barrier layer formed on the well structure. Moreover, a channel layer is formed on the diffusion barrier layer and a gate insulation layer is formed on the channel layer. The transistor element further comprises a gate electrode formed on the gate insulation layer and a source and a drain region that are separated by a channel region. A dopant concentration of the channel region that is located within the channel layer increases from the gate insulation layer towards the diffusion barrier layer.
The invention may be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:
a-1b show schematic cross-sectional views of an exemplary conventional semiconductor device at different manufacturing stages;
a-2b schematically depict a vertical dopant concentration within a well structure of the semiconductor device of
a-3f schematically show cross-sectional views of a semiconductor device at various manufacturing stages in accordance with illustrative embodiments of the present invention; and
While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Illustrative embodiments of the invention are described below. In the interest of clarity, not all features of an actual implementation are described in this specification. It will of course be appreciated that in the development of any such actual embodiment, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which will vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure.
With reference to
a schematically shows a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device 300 comprising a P-well structure 310 and an N-well structure 320 formed in a semiconductor substrate 301. It is to be noted that the substrate 301 may be any suitable substrate for forming thereon a semiconductor region, in which the P-well and N-well structures 310, 320 may be formed. It is, therefore, intended that the semiconductor substrate 301 is to enclose any substrate, for example comprising an insulating material, such as sapphire, glass and the like, on or in which a suitable semiconductor region is formed to allow the formation of the corresponding well structures 310 and 320. Moreover, the semiconductor device 300 comprises a shallow trench isolation 302 including an insulation material, such as silicon dioxide, to separate the P-well structure 310 and the N-well structure 320. The P-well structure 310 and the N-well structure 320 both comprise respective dopants arranged within the respective well structures so as to result in an exemplary vertical (with respect to the drawing) dopant concentration as is shown, for example, in
In one embodiment, as shown in
In one particular embodiment, the N-well structure 320 is defined by a first implantation with phosphorous ions with an energy of 400-800 keV (kilo electron volts) with a dose of 2×1013-2×1014 particles per square centimeter. In a second implantation step, phosphorous ions are implanted into the N-well structure 320 with an energy of 150-250 keV with a dose of 2×1012-5×1013 particles per square centimeter, followed by a further phosphorous implantation step with an energy of 50-100 keV with a dose of 2×1012-5×1013 particles per square centimeter. Finally, an implantation step with arsenic ions with an energy of 30-70 keV with a dose of 1×1012-1×1013 or of phosphorous ions with an energy of 20-50 keV with a dose of 1×1012-1×1013 may be performed to coarsely adjust the threshold voltage of the transistor element to be formed in and on the N-well region 320.
In one embodiment, the final threshold implantation may be omitted at this stage of the manufacturing process and may be carried out at a later stage, as will be detailed in the following. Thereafter, a heat treatment may be performed, such as a rapid thermal annealing process, to activate the dopant atoms within the P-well structure 310 and the N-well structure 320 and to cure lattice damage created during the implantation steps. Next, the mask layer 360 and, if required, the etch stop layer 361 are deposited and patterned by conventional photolithography techniques.
b shows the semiconductor device 300 with an epitaxially grown channel layer 350 formed over the N-well structure 320. The channel layer 350 may comprise an undoped semiconductor material, such as silicon, or a slightly doped semiconductor material as is required to obtain the desired retrograde dopant profile after completion of the semiconductor device 300. Moreover, the thickness of the channel layer 350 may be controlled to obtain the desired dopant profile. In illustrative embodiments, the thickness of the channel layer 350 may lie in the range of approximately 10-100 nanometers (nm). According to one particular embodiment, as shown in
In forming the channel layer 350 and, if required, the diffusion barrier layer 351, process parameters, such as ambient pressure, may be selected such that the crystalline growth of the channel layer 350 and of the diffusion barrier layer 351 is substantially restricted to the surface of the N-well structure 320. Thus, the mask layer 360 and the shallow trench isolation 302 remain substantially uncovered by the channel layer 350 and the diffusion barrier layer 351, except for a minimal overlap caused by the substantially horizontal growth of the layers 350 and 351. Moreover, in the embodiment including the diffusion barrier layer 351, the thickness of the layer 351 may be controlled within a range of approximately 2-20 nm to provide for the required diffusion-reducing property without unduly increasing the number of lattice imperfections owing to the slight mismatch of the lattice constant of the diffusion barrier layer 351 to the overlying and underlying semiconductor lattice.
c shows particular embodiments of the present invention, in which the N-well structure 320 has been recessed prior to the formation of the channel layer 350 and the barrier diffusion layer 351. Recessing the N-well structure may be achieved by well-established etch techniques similar to those used for forming the shallow trench isolations. According to one embodiment, recessing the N-well structure 320 may have been carried out prior to implanting the dopants into the N-well structure 320 so that essentially the same implantation parameters may be used as are described with reference to
d shows the semiconductor device 300 with a gate insulation layer 335 formed on the channel layer 350 and the P-well structure 310. Prior to the formation of the gate insulation layer 335, which may be comprised of a semiconductor oxide compound, such as silicon dioxide, the mask layer 360 and, if provided, the etch stop layer 361, are removed by a selective etch process.
According to one embodiment, prior to forming the gate insulation layer 335, a further implantation process may be performed to adjust the threshold voltage of the PMOS transistor to be formed in and over the N-well structure 320. This additional implant step for providing for a sufficient threshold voltage for the PMOS transistor may preferably be used when the gate insulation layer 335 is subsequently formed by a chemical vapor deposition process or by a rapid thermal oxidation process, in which, owing to the reduced temperature and/or the reduced process time compared to a conventional furnace process, up-diffusion of dopant atoms is minimal, so that as a consequence of the minimal up-diffusion during the formation process of the gate insulation layer 335, a required dopant concentration for achieving a desired threshold voltage is not obtained. Accordingly, the additional implant process provides for the appropriate dopant concentration within the channel layer 350 to set the required threshold voltage. In the embodiment that includes the diffusion barrier layer 351, up-diffusion of dopants is minimized, even if a conventional furnace process is employed for forming the gate insulation layer 335. Thus, the threshold voltage may be adjusted by an additional implantation process to locate dopant atoms within the channel layer 350, as indicated by reference number 370. As previously pointed out, during formation of the N-well structure 320, a threshold voltage implantation may or may not have been performed, so that the threshold implantation 370 may be controlled in correspondence to the dopant concentration within the N-well structure 320. That is, the dopant dose during the threshold implantation process to introduce dopant atoms 370 is decreased when a threshold voltage implantation process has initially been performed. On the other hand, the dopant dose is accordingly increased when no such initial threshold voltage implantation process has been performed.
Consequently, the threshold voltage may be adjusted by taking into account the initial dopant concentration in the N-well 320, the presence of the diffusion barrier layer 351 and its corresponding diffusion hindering characteristics, i.e., material composition and thickness, and the characteristics of the channel layer 350, i.e., its initial degree of doping and the thickness.
In one particular embodiment, the formation of the gate insulation layer 335 may be performed in two steps, wherein in the first step the gate insulation layer 335 is formed without removing the mask layer 360, which is preferably comprised of silicon nitride, so that the channel layer 350 receives a first portion of the gate insulation layer 335 (not shown). Then, in the second step, a second portion of the gate insulation layer 335 is formed after removing the mask layer 360 so that the P-well structure 310 receives the gate insulation layer 335 with a thickness that is reduced compared to the thickness of the gate insulation layer 335 provided on the channel layer 350.
In
f schematically shows the semiconductor device 300 with a completed N-channel transistor 330 and a completed P-channel transistor 340. The N-channel transistor 330 comprises heavily N-doped source and drain regions 331, including lightly doped extensions 332 within the P-well structure 310. Moreover, a gate electrode 334 is located over the P-well structure 310, separated therefrom by the gate insulation layer 335. Spacer elements 333 are provided at the sidewalls of the gate electrode 334.
The P-channel transistor 340 comprises heavily P-doped source and drain regions 341, including lightly doped extensions 342 within the N-well structure 320. A gate electrode 344 is provided over the channel layer 350 and is separated therefrom by the gate insulation layer 335. Spacer elements 343 are provided at the sidewalls of the gate electrode 344.
The process flow involved in forming the semiconductor device 300, as depicted in
According to the illustrative embodiments described with reference to
In
The particular embodiments disclosed above are illustrative only, as the invention may be modified and practiced in different but equivalent manners apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachings herein. For example, the process steps set forth above may be performed in a different order. Furthermore, no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown, other than as described in the claims below. It is therefore evident that the particular embodiments disclosed above may be altered or modified and all such variations are considered within the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the protection sought herein is as set forth in the claims below.
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102 14 066 | Mar 2002 | DE | national |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20030183856 A1 | Oct 2003 | US |