公开(公告)号：US10431466B2

公开(公告)日：2019-10-01

申请号：US16159461

申请日：2018-10-12

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Johanes S. Swenberg ,  Wei Liu ,  Houda Graoui ,  Steven C. H. Hung

IPC: H01L21/28 ,  H01L29/40 ,  H01L21/02 ,  H01L21/324 ,  H01L21/321 ,  H01L21/285 ,  H01L29/45 ,  H01L21/768

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments eliminating an oxygen-containing interfacial layer disposed within the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift. Further, the metal gate structure operates with an increased leakage current that is as little as one quarter the increase in leakage current associated with a similar metal gate structure formed via conventional techniques.

公开(公告)号：US10290504B2

公开(公告)日：2019-05-14

申请号：US15822435

申请日：2017-11-27

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Wei Liu ,  Theresa Kramer Guarini ,  Huy Q. Nguyen ,  Malcolm Bevan ,  Houda Graoui ,  Philip A. Bottini ,  Bernard L. Hwang ,  Lara Hawrylchak ,  Rene George

IPC: H01L21/28 ,  H01L21/3105 ,  H01J37/32 ,  H01L29/51

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to a method and apparatus for plasma treating a process chamber. A substrate having a gate stack formed thereon may be placed in a process chamber, and hydrogen containing plasma may be used to treat the gate stack in order to cure the defects in the gate stack. As the result of hydrogen containing plasma treatment, the gate stack has lower leakage and improved reliability. To protect the process chamber from Hx+ ions and H* radicals generated by the hydrogen containing plasma, the process chamber may be treated with a plasma without the substrate placed therein and prior to the hydrogen containing plasma treatment. In addition, components of the process chamber that are made of a dielectric material may be coated with a ceramic coating including an yttrium containing oxide in order to protect the components from the plasma.

公开(公告)号：US10347492B2

公开(公告)日：2019-07-09

申请号：US15874132

申请日：2018-01-18

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Steven C. H. Hung ,  Johanes S. Swenberg ,  Wei Liu ,  Houda Graoui

IPC: H01L21/28 ,  H01L21/321 ,  H01L29/49 ,  H01L21/285 ,  H01L21/67 ,  H01L29/51

Abstract: A sequential plasma process is employed to enable the modification of the work function of a p-type metal layer in a metal gate structure. The sequential plasma process includes a plasma hydrogenation and a plasma process that includes electronegative species. The sequential plasma process is performed on a p-type metal layer in a film stack, thereby replacing suboxides and/or other non-stoichiometrically combined electronegative atoms disposed on or within layers of the film stack with stoichiometrically combined electronegative atoms, such as O atoms. As a result, the work function of the p-type metal layer can be modified without changing a thickness of the p-type metal layer.

公开(公告)号：US20190172716A1

公开(公告)日：2019-06-06

申请号：US16244051

申请日：2019-01-09

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Houda Graoui ,  Johanes S. Swenberg ,  Wei Liu ,  Shashank Sharma

IPC: H01L21/28 ,  H01L21/285 ,  H01L29/45 ,  H01L29/40 ,  H01L21/321 ,  H01L21/02 ,  H01L21/324

CPC classification number: H01L21/28255 ,  H01L21/02186 ,  H01L21/0234 ,  H01L21/28512 ,  H01L21/28575 ,  H01L21/3212 ,  H01L21/324 ,  H01L29/401 ,  H01L29/45 ,  H01L29/452

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process, or a single-step plasma hydrogenation and nitridization process, is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby, according to some embodiments, removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments, adding nitrogen atoms to the layers of the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift.

公开(公告)号：US10103027B2

公开(公告)日：2018-10-16

申请号：US15442311

申请日：2017-02-24

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Johanes S. Swenberg ,  Wei Liu ,  Houda Graoui ,  Shashank Sharma

IPC: H01L21/28 ,  H01L29/40 ,  H01L21/02 ,  H01L21/324 ,  H01L21/321

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments eliminating an oxygen-containing interfacial layer disposed within the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift. Further, the metal gate structure operates with an increased leakage current that is as little as one quarter the increase in leakage current associated with a similar metal gate structure formed via conventional techniques.

公开(公告)号：US10510545B2

公开(公告)日：2019-12-17

申请号：US16244051

申请日：2019-01-09

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Houda Graoui ,  Johanes S. Swenberg ,  Wei Liu ,  Steven C. H. Hung

IPC: H01L21/28 ,  H01L21/285 ,  H01L29/45 ,  H01L21/324 ,  H01L29/40 ,  H01L21/321 ,  H01L21/02

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to enable the formation of a metal gate structure with a reduced effective oxide thickness over a similar structure formed via conventional methods. A plasma hydrogenation process followed by a plasma nitridization process, or a single-step plasma hydrogenation and nitridization process, is performed on a metal nitride layer in a film stack, thereby, according to some embodiments, removing oxygen atoms disposed within layers of the film stack and, in some embodiments, adding nitrogen atoms to the layers of the film stack. As a result, an effective oxide thickness of the metal gate structure is reduced with little or no accompanying flatband voltage shift.

公开(公告)号：US10236207B2

公开(公告)日：2019-03-19

申请号：US15438490

申请日：2017-02-21

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Johanes S. Swenberg ,  Wei Liu ,  Houda Graoui ,  Shashank Sharma ,  Shankar Muthukrishnan ,  Rene George

IPC: H01L21/768 ,  H01L21/285

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to a sequential hydrogenation and nitridization process for reducing interfacial and bulk O atoms in a conductive structure in a semiconductor device. A hydrogenation and plasma nitridization process is performed on a metal nitride layer in a conductive structure prior to deposition of a second metal layer, thereby reducing interfacial oxygen atoms formed on a surface of the metal nitride and oxygen atoms present in the bulk metal layers of the conductive structure. As a result, adhesion of the second metal layer to the metal nitride layer is improved and the electrical resistance of the contact structure is reduced.

公开(公告)号：US09831091B2

公开(公告)日：2017-11-28

申请号：US15171001

申请日：2016-06-02

Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.

Inventor： Wei Liu ,  Theresa Kramer Guarini ,  Huy Q. Nguyen ,  Malcolm Bevan ,  Houda Graoui ,  Philip A. Bottini ,  Bernard L. Hwang ,  Lara Hawrylchak ,  Rene George

IPC: H01L21/3105 ,  H01L21/28 ,  H01L29/51

CPC classification number: H01L21/28176 ,  H01J37/321 ,  H01J37/32357 ,  H01J37/3244 ,  H01J37/32477 ,  H01L21/3105 ,  H01L29/517

Abstract: Embodiments described herein generally relate to a method and apparatus for plasma treating a process chamber. A substrate having a gate stack formed thereon may be placed in a process chamber, and hydrogen containing plasma may be used to treat the gate stack in order to cure the defects in the gate stack. As the result of hydrogen containing plasma treatment, the gate stack has lower leakage and improved reliability. To protect the process chamber from Hx+ ions and H* radicals generated by the hydrogen containing plasma, the process chamber may be treated with a plasma without the substrate placed therein and prior to the hydrogen containing plasma treatment. In addition, components of the process chamber that are made of a dielectric material may be coated with a ceramic coating including an yttrium containing oxide in order to protect the components from the plasma.