1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a semiconductor seal-ring structure and a manufacturing method, and more particularly, to the semiconductor seal-ring structure with a capacitive effect formed within a semiconductor chip, and a manufacturing method of the seal-ring structure.
2. Description of the Related Art
Reference is made to
Reference is made to
One particular aspect of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor chip seal-ring structure and a manufacturing method for the semiconductor seal-ring structure. The seal-ring structure of the semiconductor chip provides a capacitor within the semiconductor chip for eliminating the need of an external capacitor C1 while stabilizing inputted voltage for the semiconductor chip.
The seal-ring structure of the present invention includes a substrate, a source/drain layer, a first dielectric layer, a first lower metal layer, a gate layer and a second lower metal layer. The source/drain layer is disposed within the substrate. The first dielectric layer is disposed over the substrate, wherein the first dielectric layer has a first contact and a second contact. The first lower metal layer is disposed over the first dielectric layer and coupled to the source/drain layer via the first contact. The gate layer is disposed within the first dielectric layer. The second lower metal layer is disposed over the first dielectric layer and coupled to the gate layer via the second contact.
The manufacturing method of the seal-ring structure of the present invention includes steps of preparing a substrate, forming a source/drain layer within the substrate, forming a first dielectric layer over the substrate, forming a gate layer within the first dielectric layer, and forming a first lower metal layer over the first dielectric layer, wherein the first lower metal layer couples to the source/drain layer via a first contact, and forming a second lower metal layer over the first dielectric layer, wherein the second lower metal layer couples to the gate layer via a second contact.
The seal-ring structure provides a capacitor between the first lower metal layer and the second lower metal layer and between the first contact and the second contact. Moreover, the gate layer serves as a first electrode of the capacitor and the source/drain layer is a second electrode of the capacitor. Therefore, with the capacitor formed between an input voltage pin and a ground pin of the semiconductor chip of the present invention the inputted voltage received through the input voltage pin could still be stabilized even without the placement of an external capacitor outside of the semiconductor chip.
For further understanding of the invention, reference is made to the following detailed description illustrating the embodiments and examples of the invention. The description is only for illustrating the invention and is not intended to limit of the scope of the claim.
The drawings included herein provide a further understanding of the invention. A brief introduction of the drawings is as follows:
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The seal-ring structure 22, the first lower metal layer M1 and the upper metal layer M2 are coupled to the low voltage source Vss while the second lower metal layer M1′ is coupled to the high voltage source Vdd.
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The first dielectric layer 228 has a first contact 224/225 and a second contact 226. The first lower metal layer M1 is disposed over the first dielectric layer 228 and coupled to the source/drain layer 221/222 via the first contact 224/225. Moreover, the gate layer 223 is disposed within the first dielectric layer 228. The second lower metal layer M1′ is disposed over the first dielectric layer 228 and coupled to the gate layer 223 via the second contact 226. In one implementation, the gate layer 223 is a poly-silicon layer.
In the seal-ring structure 22, a capacitor Cs is formed between the first lower metal layer M1 and the second lower metal layer M1′ and between the first contact 224/225 and the second contact 226. Moreover, the source/drain layer 221/222 is a first electrode of the capacitor Cs, and the gate layer 223 is a second electrode of the capacitor Cs. Furthermore, the first electrode of the capacitor Cs is used to couple to the low voltage source Vss, and the second electrode of the capacitor Cs is used to couple to the high voltage source Vdd.
The seal-ring structure 22 further comprises a second dielectric layer 229, an upper metal layer M2, and a protection layer 230. The second dielectric layer 229 is disposed over the first lower metal layer M1 and the second lower metal layer M1′. The second dielectric layer 229 has a third contact, and the material of the second dielectric layer 229 could be selected from a group including but not limited to SiO2, Si3N4, SiOxNy, spin on glass (SOG) or low-K material. Moreover, the upper metal layer M2 is disposed over the second dielectric layer 229 and coupled to the first lower metal layer M1 via the third contact 227. The protection layer 230 is disposed over the upper metal layer M2. Furthermore, the protection layer 230 is the top layer of the seal-ring structure 22, and thus is configured to minimize any potential damage or pollution that could have taken place on the surface of the seal-ring structure 22.
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The manufacturing method of seal-ring structure 22 further includes step S110 in which a second dielectric layer 229 is formed over the first lower metal layer M1 and the second lower metal layer M1′. In step S112, the manufacturing method forms an upper metal layer M2 over the second dielectric layer 229, wherein the upper metal layer M2 is coupled to the first lower layer M1 via a third contact 227. In step S114, the manufacturing method forms a protection layer over the upper metal layer M2. Moreover, both the first dielectric layer 228 and the second dielectric layer 229 could be selected from a group including but not limited to SiO2, Si3N4, SiOxNy, spin on glass (SOG) or low-K material.
The manufacturing of the contacts 224, 225, 226, 227 could be including forming holes within the dielectric layers 228, 229, depositing the metal material (such as Ti, W, Al, Ag, Cu or alloy) within the dielectric layers 228, 229 and filling the metal material into the holes by physical vapor depositing (PVD) or chemical vapor depositing (CVD), and etching the metal material other than that within the holes wherein the un-etched metal material serves as the contacts 224, 225, 226, 227.
To sum up, the seal-ring structure 22 according to the manufacturing method of the present invention provides the capacitor Cs formed between the first lower metal layer M1 and the second lower metal layer M1′ and between the first contact 224/225 and the second contact 226. Furthermore, the source/drain layer 221/222 of the seal-ring structure 22 is used to be a first electrode of the capacitor Cs, and the gate layer 223 of the seal-ring structure 22 is used to be a second electrode of the capacitor Cs. The first electrode of the capacitor Cs is used to couple to the low voltage source Vss, and the second electrode of the capacitor Cs is used to couple to the high voltage source Vdd.
The description above only illustrates specific embodiments and examples of the invention. The invention should therefore cover various modifications and variations made to the herein-described structure and operations of the invention, provided they fall within the scope of the invention as defined in the following appended claims.