THERMAL CONTACT ARRANGEMENT FOR MULTI-CHANNEL SEMICONDUCTOR ELEMENT

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a semiconductor device, and in particular to a thermal via arrangement for a multi-channel semiconductor device.Description of the Related Art

[0002] The design of integrated circuits requires a shrinkage channel length for an electronic device and an increased number of input / output connections (pin account) for multi-functional cells. Accordingly, fin-like electronic devices have been developed for the increase of pin accesses for the cells. For a conventional integrated circuit, however, the reliability and quality of fin-like electronic devices is limited due to problems with heat dissipation.

[0003] Thus, a novel semiconductor device having improved thermal dissipation ability is needed.

[0004] Related semiconductor devices are known from US 2014 / 0117453 A1, US 2008 / 0283925 A1, US 2015 / 0287796 A1, and US 2016 / 0056154 A1.

[0005] US 2007 / 0045735 A1 discloses a semiconductor device according to the preamble of claim 1, in which an odd number of contacts are placed on source / drain regions on both sides of a gate structure. The contacts are placed centered between adjacent fins, without overlapping the fins.BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] The invention refers to a semiconductor device according to claim 1. Preferred embodiments of the invention are defined in the appended claims.

[0007] A detailed description is given in the following embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The present invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein: FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an semiconductor device in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof; FIG. 1B is a top view of an semiconductor device in accordance with some examples shown in FIG. 1A; FIGS. 2A-2D are top views of an semiconductor device in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof; FIGS. 3A-3D are top views of an semiconductor device in accordance with some comparable examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof; FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the thermal resistance values and the amount of fin structures of the semiconductor devices in accordance with some examples shown in FIGS. 2A-2D and the semiconductor device in accordance with the comparable examples shown in FIGS. 3A-3D. FIGS. 5A, 5B, 5Fand 5G are top views of a semiconductor device in accordance with some embodiments of the invention, 5C, 5D, 5E and 5H are top views of a semiconductor device in accordance with examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof; FIG. 6 is a top view of a semiconductor device in accordance with some comparable examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof; and FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the thermal resistance values and the amount of dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices in accordance with some embodiments of the invention and examples shown in FIGS. 5A-5H and the semiconductor device in accordance with some comparable examples shown in FIG. 6. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The following description is of the best-contemplated mode of carrying out the invention. This description is made for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention. The scope of the invention is determined by reference to the appended claims.

[0010] The present invention will be described with respect to particular embodiments and with reference to certain drawings, but the invention is not limited thereto and is only limited by the claims. The drawings described are only schematic. In the drawings, the size of some of the elements may be exaggerated for illustrative purposes and not drawn to scale. The dimensions and the relative dimensions do not correspond to actual dimensions in the practice of the invention.

[0011] The invention provides a semiconductor device according to claim 1. The semiconductor device includes fin-liked electronic devices connected in parallel, so that the semiconductor device may serve as a multi-channel fin-liked electronic device. The semiconductor device provides a rule of the arrangement of additional bottommost via structures on a single source contact structure and / or a single drain contact structure of the multi-channel fin-liked electronic device to improve the thermal dissipation ability.

[0012] FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a semiconductor device 500 in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof. FIG. 1B is a top view of the semiconductor device 500 in accordance with some embodiments of the examples shown in FIG. 1A. In some embodiments, the semiconductor device 500 includes a multi-channel fin field-effect transistor (multi-channel fin FET). As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the semiconductor device 500 includes a substrate 200 including a plurality of fin structures 204, a gate structure 230, a drain contact structure 240, a source contact structure 242, drain via structures 250 and source via structures 252.

[0013] In some embodiments, the substrate 200 includes a silicon (Si) substrate or a SiGe substrate. In some embodiments, the substrate 200 includes a bulk semiconductor substrate, a strained semiconductor substrate or a compound semiconductor substrate. In some embodiments, the substrate is a silicon on insulator (SOI) layer substrate or a silicon on sapphire (SOS) substrate.

[0014] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the fin structures 204 extend from the substrate 200. In some embodiments, each of the fin structures 204 is defined and surrounded by trench isolation features 206 extending substantially along a direction 302. Therefore, the fins 204 are arranged in parallel and extended substantially along the direction 302. In addition, the fin structures 204 are periodically arranged with a pitch P in a direction 300 that is different from the direction 302. In some embodiments, the direction 302 is not parallel to the direction 300. For example, the direction 302 is substantially perpendicular to the direction 300. In some embodiments, the trench isolation features 206 include shallow trench isolation (STI) features, field oxide (FOX) features, or other suitable electrically insulating features.

[0015] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, in some embodiments, each of the fin structures 204 has a source portion 222, a drain portion 220, and a channel portion 224. In some embodiments, the source portion 222 and the drain portion 220 are arranged close to terminals of each of the fin structures 204, respectively. In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, four fin structures 204 are shown for clarity, but the amount of fin structures 204 is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. In other embodiments, the amount of fin structures 204 is set to meet the design requirements.

[0016] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, in some embodiments, the gate structure 230 is formed on the tops and opposite sidewalls of each of the fin structures 204. In addition, the gate structure 230 may include a single gate structure extending substantially along the direction 300. In some embodiments, the gate structure 230 includes a gate dielectric layer 232 and a gate electrode layer 234 over the gate dielectric layer 232. In some embodiments, the gate dielectric layer 232 is formed of a high-k dielectric layer. The high-k dielectric layer may be formed of hafnium oxide, zirconium oxide, aluminum oxide, silicon oxynitride, hafnium dioxide-alumina alloy, hafnium silicon oxide, hafnium silicon oxynitride, hafnium tantalum oxide, hafnium titanium oxide, hafnium zirconium oxide, another suitable high-k material, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the gate electrode layer 234 is formed of a conductive material, such as aluminum (Al), copper (Cu), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), tantalum (Ta), or another applicable material.

[0017] In some embodiments, a portion of each of the fin structures 204 overlapping the gate structure 230 is defined as a channel portion 224 of each of the fin structures 204. The channel portion 224 may be positioned in the middle portion of each of the fin structures 204 and between the source portion 222 and the drain portion 220. According to the invention, the source portion 222 and the drain portion 220 are positioned on opposite sides of the gate structure 230. In some embodiments, the channel portion 224 has a length L substantially along the direction 302 and a width W substantially along the direction 300. The length L is defined as a channel length of the semiconductor device 500. In some embodiments, the channel length of the semiconductor device 500 is designed to be equal to or less than 20 nm, for example, 20 nm, 16 nm, 14 nm or 10 nm. In addition, a channel width of the semiconductor device 500 is defined by multiplying the width W of the channel portion 224 by the amount of fin structures 204. For example, the channel width of the semiconductor device 500 is 4W. However, the amount of fin structures 204 shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B is not limited to the disclosed embodiments.

[0018] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, in some embodiments, the drain contact structure 240 is positioned over the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204 and the trench isolation features 206 between the fin structures 204. The drain contact structure 240 may be formed extending substantially along the direction 300. In addition, the drain contact structure 240 may be a single conductive structure, which is formed directly above and is electrically connected to the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204. That is to say, the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204 of the semiconductor device 500 are electrically connected to each other through the single drain contact structure 240. In some embodiments, the drain contact structure 240 is formed of conductive materials, such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), tantalum (Ta), tantalum nitride (TaN), or another applicable material.

[0019] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, in some embodiments, the source contact structure 242 is positioned over the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204 and the trench isolation features 206 between the fin structures 204. The source contact structure 242 may be formed extending substantially along the direction 300. In addition, the source contact structure 242 is a single conductive structure, which is formed directly above and is electrically connected to the source portions 202 of the fin structures 204. That is to say, the source portions 202 of the fin structures 204 of the semiconductor device 500 are electrically connected to each other through the single source contact structure 242. In some embodiments, the source contact structure 242 is formed of conductive materials, such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), tantalum (Ta), tantalum nitride (TaN), or another applicable material.

[0020] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, according to the invention, a first amount of drain via structures 250 is electrically connected to the drain contact structure 240. In addition, the drain via structures 250 are positioned on and in contact with the single drain contact structure 240. Therefore, the drain via structures 250 may serve as the bottommost via structures. According to the invention, the drain via structures 250 are respectively positioned overlying the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204. In some embodiments, the drain via structures 250 and the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204 are in one-to-one correspondence. For example, each of the drain via structures 250 is positioned directly above a single drain portion 220 of the corresponding fin structure 204.

[0021] In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the amount of drain via structures 250 (the first amount) is designed to be less than or equal to the amount of fin structures 204 of the semiconductor device 500. For example, the amount of drain via structures 250 (the first amount) is two. That is to say, there are two drain via structures 250 that are arranged in the semiconductor device 500 having four fin structures 204. It should be noted that the amount of drain via structures 250 is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. In some embodiments, the amount of drain via structures 250 is to meet the requirement that the closest two drain via structures 250 are separated from each other by at least two times the pitch P of the fin structures 204. For example, the two drain via structures 250 are respectively arranged directly above the drain portion 220 of the second fin structure 204 and the drain portion 220 of the fourth fin structure 204 from the left of the FIG. 1B.

[0022] In some embodiments, the drain via structures 250 are formed of a conductive material, such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), tantalum (Ta), tantalum nitride (TaN), or another applicable material.

[0023] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, according to the invention, a second amount of source via structures 252 is electrically connected to the source contact structure 242. In addition, the source via structures 252 are positioned on and in contact with the single source contact structure 242. Therefore, the source via structures 252 may serve as the bottommost via structures. According to the invention, the source via structures 252 are respectively positioned overlying the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204. In some embodiments, the source via structures 252 and the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204 are in one-to-one correspondence. For example, each of the source via structures 252 is positioned directly above a single source portion 222 of the corresponding fin structure 204.

[0024] In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the amount of source via structures 252 (the second amount) is designed to be less than or equal to the amount of fin structures 204 of the semiconductor device 500. For example, the amount of source via structures 252 (the second amount) is two. That is to say, there are two source via structures 252 arranged in the semiconductor device 500 having four fin structures 204. It should be noted that the amount of source via structures 252 is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. In some embodiments, the amount of source via structures 252 is to meet the requirement that the closest two source via structures 252 are separated from each other by at least two times the pitch P of the fin structures 204. For example, the two source via structures 250 are respectively arranged directly above the source portion 222 of the first fin structure 204 and the source portion 222 of the third fin structure 204 from the left of the FIG. 1B.

[0025] In some embodiments, the source via structures 252 are formed of a conductive material, such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), tantalum (Ta), tantalum nitride (TaN), or another applicable material.

[0026] According to the invention, the semiconductor device 500 is designed to have the following arrangements, the sum of the amount of drain via structures 250 and the source via structures 252 (the sum of the first amount and the second amount) is greater than or equal to 2, and the sum of the amount of drain via structures 250 and the amount of source via structures 252 is less than or equal to two times the amount of fin structures 204 (2≤ (the sum of the amount of drain via structures 250 and the source via structures 252) ≤ 2* the amount of fin structures 204). For example shown in FIG. 5F, the amount of drain via structures 250J1 and 250J2 is 2 (i.e. the first amount is 2), the amount of source via structures 252J1, 252J2 and 252J3 is 3 (i.e. the second amount is 3), the amount of fin structures 204 is 6, and two times the amount of fin structures 204 is 12. Therefore, the sum of the amount of drain via structures 250 and the amount of source via structures 252, which is equal to 5, is greater than 2 and less than 12.

[0027] According to the invention, the semiconductor device 500 is designed to have the following arrangements, the first amount of drain via structures 250 are respectively positioned overlying the drain portions 220 of the first amount of fin structures 204, and the second amount the source via structures 252 are respectively positioned overlying the source portions 222 of the second amount of remaining fin structures 204. For example shown in FIG. 5F, two drain via structures 250J1 and 250J2 are respectively positioned overlying the drain portions 220 of two of the fin structures 204 (e.g. the drain portion 220 of the second fin structure 204 and the drain portion 220 of the sixth fin structure 204 from the left of the FIG. 1B), and three source via structures 252J1, 252J2 and 252J3 are respectively positioned overlying the source portions 222 of three remaining source via structures 252 (e.g. the source portion 222 of the first fin structure 204 and the source portion 222 of the third fin structure 204 from the left of the FIG. 1B).

[0028] According to the invention, the semiconductor device 500 is designed to arrange one of the drain via structures 250 directly above the drain portion 220 of one of the fin structures 204, and to arrange one of the source via structures 252 directly above the source portion 222 of another one of the fin structures 204. In addition, the remaining source via structures 252 are free from having to be positioned directly above the source portion 222 of the one of the fin structures 204, and the remaining drain via structures 250 are free from having to be positioned directly above the drain portion 220 of the other one of the fin structures 240. For example shown in FIG. 5F, the leftmost one of the drain via structures 250J2 is arranged directly above the drain portion 220 of the second fin structures 204 from the left of the figures, and the leftmost one of the source via structures 252J2 is arranged directly above the source portion 222 of the first fin structures 204 from the left of the figures. In addition, the rightmost one of the source via structures 252J3 (one of the remaining source via structures 252J1, 252J3) is free from having to be positioned directly above the source portion 222 of the second fin structure 204 from the left of the figures, and the rightmost one of the drain via structures 250J1 is free from having to be positioned directly above the drain portion 220 of the drain portion 220 of the first fin structure 204 from the left of the figures.

[0029] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, in some embodiments, one or more gate via structures 254 is electrically connected to the gate structure 230. For example, one gate via structures 254 is arranged in the gate structure 230 of the semiconductor device 500. It should be noted that the amount of gate via structures 254 is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. In some embodiments, the amount of gate via structures 254 is set to be less than or equal the amount of drain via structures 250 and / or the amount of source via structures 252. In some other embodiments, the amount of gate via structures 254 is to meet the requirement that the closest two gate via structures 254 are separated from each other by at least two times the pitch P of the fin structures 204.

[0030] In some embodiments, the gate via structure 254 is positioned on and in contact with the single gate structure 230. In some embodiments, the gate via structure 254 is respectively positioned overlying the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204. In some embodiments, the gate via structure 254 are formed of a conductive material, such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), tantalum (Ta), tantalum nitride (TaN), or another applicable material.

[0031] In some embodiments, the semiconductor device 500, for example, a multi-channel FinFET device, is designed to have more than one drain via structure 250 and more than one source via structure 252 to improve the thermal dissipation ability of the multi-channel FinFET device.

[0032] FIGS. 2A-2D are top views of semiconductor devices 500A-500D in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof. FIGS. 3A-3D are top views of semiconductor devices 600A-600D in accordance with some comparable examples. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the simulation result of thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D shown in FIGS. 2A-2D and thermal resistance (RthO) of the semiconductor devices 600A-600D shown in FIGS. 3A-3D. The simulation result is obtained based on the parameters of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D and 600A-600D, for example, CPP (the distance between the drain via structure / source via structure and the gate electrode layer (i.e. contact-gate pitch))=70 nm, Fin Pitch (the pitch (P) of the fin structure)=42 nm, Lg (the length (along the direction 302) of the gate electrode layer)=22 nm, Fin Height (the height of the fin structure)=40 nm, Fin Width (the width (along the direction 300) of the fin structure)=8 nm (top) / 10 nm (bottom), and via diameter (the diameter of the drain via structure / source via structure)=32 nm. In addition, FIG. 4 illustrates the relationship between the thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D shown in FIGS. 2A-2D and the amount of fin structures, and the relationship between thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 600A-600D shown in FIGS. 3A-3D and the amount of fin structures. Elements of the embodiments hereinafter, that are the same or similar as those previously described with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, are not repeated for brevity.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 2A, the semiconductor device 500A is a multi-channel FinFET device having two fin structures 204-1 and 204-2. The semiconductor device 500A includes two drain via structures 250A1 and 250A2 respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-1 and 204-2. The semiconductor device 500A includes two source via structures 252A1 and 252A2 respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1 and 204-2. In addition, the semiconductor device 500A includes one gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230A.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 2B, the semiconductor device 500B is similar to the semiconductor device 500 shown in FIG. 1B. The semiconductor device 500B is a multi-channel FinFET device having four fin structures 204-1, 204-2, 204-3 and 204-4. The semiconductor device 500B includes two drain via structures 250B1 and 250B2 respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-2 and 204-4. The semiconductor device 500B includes two source via structures 252B1 and 252B2 respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1 and 204-3. In addition, the semiconductor device 500B includes one gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230B.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 2C, the semiconductor device 500C is a multi-channel FinFET device having six fin structures 204-1, 204-2, 204-3, 204-4, 204-5 and 204-6. The semiconductor device 500B includes three drain via structures 250C1, 250C2 and 250C3 respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-2, 204-4 and 204-6. The semiconductor device 500B includes three source via structures 252C1, 252C2 and 252C3 respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1, 204-3 and 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500C includes one gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230C.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 2D, the semiconductor device 500D is a multi-channel FinFET device having eight fin structures 204-1, 204-2, 204-3, 204-4, 204-5, 204-6, 204-7 and 204-8. The semiconductor device 500D includes four drain via structures 250D1, 250D2, 250D3 and 250D4 respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-2, 204-4, 204-6 and 204-8. The semiconductor device 500D includes four source via structures 252D1, 252D2, 252D3 and 252D4 respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1, 204-3, 204-5 and 204-7. In addition, the semiconductor device 500D includes one gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230D.

[0037] In some embodiments, the fin structures 204-1, 204-2, 204-3, 204-4, 204-5, 204-6, 204-7 and 204-8 of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D are the same as / similar to the fin structure 214 of the semiconductor device 500 shown in FIGS. 1A-1B. The drain via structures 250A1 and 250A2, the drain via structures 250B1 and 250B2, the drain via structures 250C1, 250C2 and 250C3 and the drain via structures 250D1, 250D2, 250D3 and 250D4 of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D are the same as / similar to the drain via structure 250 of the semiconductor devices 500 shown in FIGS. 1A-1B. The source via structures 252A1 and 252A2, the source via structures 252B1 and 252B2, the source via structures 252C1, 252C2 and 252C3 and the source via structures 252D1, 252D2, 252D3 and 252D4 of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D are the same as / similar to the source via structures 252 of the semiconductor devices 500 shown in FIGS. 1A-1B. The gate structures 230A- 230D of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D are the same as / similar to the gate structure 230 of the semiconductor devices 500 shown in FIGS. 1A-1B.

[0038] According to the invention, the semiconductor devices 500A-500D are designed to have the following arrangements, the sum of the amount of drain via structures and the source via structures is greater than or equal to 2, and the sum of the amount of drain via structures and the source via structures is less than or equal to two times the amount of fin structures.

[0039] In addition, the arrangements of the drain via structures and the source via structures of the semiconductor devices 500B-500D may set to meet the arrangements of the drain via structures and the source via structures of the semiconductor device 500.

[0040] FIGS. 3A-3D are top views of semiconductor devices 600A-600D in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof. Each of the semiconductor devices 600A-600D has a single drain via structure and a single source via structure. Compared with the semiconductor devices 500A-500D, the semiconductor devices 600A-600D have a similar structure except that each of the semiconductor devices 600A-600D has a single drain via structure on the single drain contact structure and a single source via structure 640 on the single source contact structure 642.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 3A, the semiconductor device 600A in accordance with some comparable examples is a multi-channel FinFET device having two fin structures 604-1 and 604-2. The semiconductor device 600A includes a single drain via structure 650A1 on a drain portion 620 of the fin structure 604-1. The semiconductor device 600A includes a single source via structure 652A1 on a source portion 622 of the fin structure 604-2. In addition, the semiconductor device 600A includes one gate via structure 654 on a gate structure 630A.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 3B, the semiconductor device 600B in accordance with some comparable examples is a multi-channel FinFET device having four fin structures 604-1, 604-2, 604-3 and 604-4. The semiconductor device 600B includes a single drain via structure 650B1 on a drain portion 620 of the fin structure 604-2. The semiconductor device 600B includes a single source via structure 652B1 on respectively on a source portion 622 of the fin structure 604-1. In addition, the semiconductor device 600B includes one gate via structure 654 on a gate structure 630B.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 3C, the semiconductor device 600C in accordance with some comparable examples is a multi-channel FinFET device having six fin structures 604-1, 604-2, 604-3, 604-4, 604-5 and 604-6. The semiconductor device 600B includes a single drain via structure 650C1 on a drain portion 620 of the fin structure 604-2. The semiconductor device 500B includes t a single source via structure 652C1 on a source portion 622 of the fin structure 604-1. In addition, the semiconductor device 600C includes one gate via structure 654 on a gate structure 630C.

[0044] As shown in FIG. 3D, the semiconductor device 600D in accordance with some comparable examples is a multi-channel FinFET device having eight fin structures 604-1, 604-2, 604-3, 604-4, 604-5, 604-6, 604-7 and 604-8. The semiconductor device 600D includes a single drain via structure 650D1 on a drain portion 620 of the fin structure 604-2. The semiconductor device 600D includes a single source via structure 652D1 on a source portion 622 of the fin structures 604-1. In addition, the semiconductor device 600D includes one gate via structure 654 on a gate structure 630D.

[0045] FIG. 4 illustrates the comparison result between the thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 500A-500D shown in FIGS. 2A-2D and the amount of fin structures, and thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 600A-600D shown in FIGS. 3A-3D and the amount of fin structures. In FIG. 4, the points 550A, 550B, 550C and 550D respectively show thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor device 500A having two fin structures, the semiconductor device 500B having four fin structures, the semiconductor device 500C having six fin structures and the semiconductor device 500D having eight fin structures in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof. In addition, the points 650A, 650B, 650C and 650D shown in FIG. 4 respectively show thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor device 600A having two fin structures, the semiconductor device 600B having four fin structures, the semiconductor device 600C having six fin structures and the semiconductor device 600D having eight fin structures in accordance with some comparable examples.

[0046] As shown in FIG. 4, the points 650A, 650B, 650C and 650D show that when a single drain via structure and a single source via structure are arranged in the multi-channel FinFET device, such as the semiconductor devices 600A-600D of the comparable examples, the thermal resistance values of the multi-channel FinFET devices of the comparable examples increase substantially proportional to the amount of fin structures.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 4 the points 550A, 550B, 550C and 550D show that when multi-drain via structures and multi-source via structures are arranged in the multi-channel FinFET device, such as the semiconductor devices 500A-500D in some embodiments, the thermal resistance of the multi-channel FinFET device approaches a saturation value when the amount of fin structures is increased. Compared to the thermal resistance values of the semiconductor devices 600A-600D of the comparable examples (the points 650A, 650B, 650C and 650D), the semiconductor devices 500A-500D show the lower thermal resistance values by arranging additional (dummy) drain via structures on a single drain contact structure and additional (dummy) source via structures on a single source contact structure of the multi-channel FinFET device. In addition, the additional (dummy) drain via structures are positioned beside the drain via structure, and the additional (dummy) source via structures are positioned beside the source via structure.

[0048] In some embodiments, the semiconductor device, for example, a multi-channel FinFET device includes a drain via structure electrically connected to the drain contact structure 240 and a source via structure electrically connected to the source contact structure 242. In addition, the semiconductor device may include at least one drain dummy via structure and / or source dummy via structure arranged to improve the thermal dissipation ability of the multi-channel FinFET device. In some embodiments, the drain dummy via structure is the same as / similar to the drain via structure, and the source dummy via structure is the same as / similar to the source via structure. In addition, the drain dummy via structures are positioned beside the drain via structure, and the source dummy via structures are positioned beside the source via structure.

[0049] FIGS. 5A, 5B, 5F and 5G are top views of semiconductor devices 500E, 500F, 500J, 500K in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. FIGS. 5C, 5D, 5E, 5H and FIG. 6 is a top view of a semiconductor device 600E in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the simulation result of thermal resistance (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L shown in FIGS. 5A-5H and thermal resistance (Rtho) of the semiconductor devices 600E shown in FIG. 6. The simulation result is obtained based on the parameters of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L and 600E, for example, CPP (the distance between the drain via structure / source via structure and the gate electrode layer (i.e. contact-gate pitch))=70 nm, Fin Pitch (the pitch (P) of the fin structure)=42 nm, Lg (the length (along the direction 302) of the gate electrode layer)=22 nm, Fin Height (the height of the fin structure)=40 nm, Fin Width (the width (along the direction 300) of the fin structure)=8 nm (top) / 10 nm (bottom), and via diameter (the diameter of the drain via structure / source via structure)=32 nm. In addition, FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the thermal resistance values and the amount of fin structures of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L in accordance with the configurations shown in FIGS. 5A-5H and the semiconductor device 600E in accordance with some comparable examples shown in FIG. 6.

[0050] In some embodiments, the semiconductor devices 500E-500L are multi-channel FinFET devices having six fin structures 204-1, 204-2, 204-3, 204-4, 204-5 and 204-6. In some embodiments, each of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L includes a drain via structure electrically connected to the drain contact structure 240 and a source via structure electrically connected to the source contact structure 242. In addition, each of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L may include at least one drain dummy via structure and / or source dummy via structure to improve the thermal dissipation ability of the multi-channel FinFET device.

[0051] As shown in FIG. 5A, the semiconductor device 500E includes a drain via structure 250E1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252E1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500E further includes and a source dummy via structure 252E2 beside the source via structure 252E1 and on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500E includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230E.

[0052] As shown in FIG. 5B, the semiconductor device 500F includes a drain via structure 250F1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252F1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500F further includes and a drain dummy via structure 250F2 beside the drain via structure 250F1 and on the drain portion 220 of the fin structure 204-2. In addition, the semiconductor device 500F includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230F.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 5C, the semiconductor device 500G includes a drain via structure 250G1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252G1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500E further includes two source dummy via structures 252G2 and 252G3 beside the drain via structure 250G1 and respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1 and 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500G includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230G.

[0054] As shown in FIG. 5D, the semiconductor device 500H includes a drain via structure 250H1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252H1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500H further includes two drain via structures 250H2 and 250H3 beside the drain via structure 250H1 and respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-2 and 204-4. In addition, the semiconductor device 500H includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230H.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 5E, the semiconductor device 500I includes a drain via structure 250I1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252I1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500I further includes a drain dummy via structures 250I2 beside the drain via structure 250I1 and on the drain portions 220 of the fin structure 204-2. The semiconductor device 500I further includes a source dummy via structure 252I2 beside the source via structure 252I1 and on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500I includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230I.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 5F, the semiconductor device 500J includes a drain via structure 250J1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252J1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500J further includes and a drain dummy via structure 250J2 beside the drain via structure 250J1and on the drain portion 220 of the fin structure 204-2. The semiconductor device 500J further includes two source dummy via structures 252J2 and 252J3 beside the drain via structure 250J1 and respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1 and 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500J includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230J.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 5G, the semiconductor device 500K includes a drain via structure 250K1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252K1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500K further includes two drain via structures 250K2 and 250K3 beside the drain via structure 250K1 and respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-2 and 204-4. The semiconductor device 500K further includes a source dummy via structure 252K2 beside the source via structure 252K1 and on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500K includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230K.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 5H, the semiconductor device 500L includes a drain via structure 250L1 on the drain portion 220 of the fin structures 204-6 and a source via structure 252L1 on the source portion 222 of the fin structure 204-3. The semiconductor device 500L further includes two drain dummy via structures 250L2 and 250L3 beside the drain via structure 250L1 and respectively on the drain portions 220 of the fin structures 204-2 and 204-4. The semiconductor device 500L further includes two source dummy via structures 252L2 and 252L3 beside the source via structure 252L1 and respectively on the source portions 222 of the fin structures 204-1 and 204-5. In addition, the semiconductor device 500L includes a single gate via structure 254 on a gate structure 230L.

[0059] According to the invention, the semiconductor devices 500E, 500F, 500J and 500K are designed to have the following arrangements, the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is greater than 1. In addition, the amount of drain via structures and / or the amount of source via structures of the semiconductor device is less than the amount of fin structures.

[0060] FIG. 6 is a top view of a semiconductor device 600E in accordance with some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof. The semiconductor devices 600E has a single drain via structure on the single drain contact structure and a single source via structure on the single source contact structure. Compared with the semiconductor devices 500E-500L, the semiconductor device 600E has a similar structure except that the semiconductor device 600E does not include any drain dummy via structure and / or any source dummy via structure.

[0061] In some embodiments, the arrangements of the drain via structures (including the drain dummy via structures) and the source via structures (including the source dummy via structures) of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L set to meet the arrangements of the drain via structures and the source via structures of the semiconductor device 500.

[0062] As shown in FIG. 6, the semiconductor device 600E in accordance with some comparable examples is a multi-channel FinFET device having six fin structures 604-1, 604-2, 604-3, 604-4, 604-5 and 604-6. The semiconductor device 600E includes a single drain via structure 650E1 on a drain portion 620 of the fin structure 604-6. The semiconductor device 600E includes a single source via structure 652E1 on a source portion 622 of the fin structure 604-3. In addition, the semiconductor device 600C includes one gate via structure 654 on a gate structure 630E.

[0063] FIG. 7 illustrates the comparison result between the thermal resistance values and the amount of dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L shown in FIGS. 5A-5H and the semiconductor device 600E shown in FIG. 6. In FIG. 7, the points 550E, 550F, 550J and 550K respectively show the thermal resistance values (R thO ) of the semiconductor devices 500E, 500F, 500J and 500K having six fin structures in accordance with some embodiments of the invention. In addition, the point 650E shown in FIG. 7 shows the thermal resistance values (R thO ) of the semiconductor device 600E having six fin structures in accordance with some comparable examples.

[0064] As shown in FIG. 7, the point 650E shows that the thermal resistance values (R thO ) of the semiconductor device 600E, which is arranged a single drain via structure on the single drain contact structure and a single source via structure on the single source contact structure, in accordance with some comparable examples is about 3.0 K / µW.

[0065] As shown in FIG. 7, from the comparison between the points 550E-550L and the point 650, the semiconductor devices 500E-500L, which have at least one drain dummy via structure and / or at least one source dummy via structure, have the lower thermal resistance values (R thO ) than the semiconductor device 600E, which has a single drain via structure and a single source via structure.

[0066] In addition, from the result of the points 550E-550L shown in FIG. 7, it should be noted that among the semiconductor devices 500E-500L, when the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an odd number, the semiconductor device having the greater amount of drain dummy via structures may show a lower thermal resistance value. For example, the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices 500E-500F are each equal to 1. The amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500E is equal to 0, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500E is equal to 1. In addition, the amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500F is equal to 1, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500F is equal to 0. Compared with the semiconductor device 500E (the point 550E), the semiconductor device 500F (the point 550F) having the greater amount of drain dummy via structures shows a lower thermal resistance value (R tho ), while the amount of the fin structure and the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and source dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices 500E-500F are kept at the same value. For example, the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and source dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices 500E-500F are each equal to 3. The amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500J is equal to 1, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500J is equal to 2. In addition, the amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500K is equal to 2, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500F is equal to 1. Compared with the semiconductor device 500J (the point 550J), the semiconductor device 500K (the point 550K) having the greater amount of drain dummy via structures shows a lower thermal resistance value (R thO ) while the amount of the fin structure and the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices 500J-500K are kept at the same value.

[0067] In some embodiments, the semiconductor device may be designed to have the following arrangements, when the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an odd number and represented as (2N-1), the amount of drain dummy via structures is equal to N and the amount of source dummy via structures is equal to (N-1), where N is a positive integer.

[0068] Similarly, the semiconductor device may be designed to have the following arrangements, when the sum of the amount of drain via structures, the amount of drain dummy via structures, the amount of source via structures and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an odd number and represented as (2N+1), the sum of the amount of drain via structures and the amount of drain dummy via structures are equal to (N+1) and the sum of the amount of source via structures and the amount of source dummy via structures are equal to N, where N is a positive integer.

[0069] In some embodiments, an overlapping area between the drain via structure and the drain contact structure 240 or the drain dummy via structure and the drain contact structure 240 is substantially equal to the drain region 220 of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L. In addition, an overlapping area between the source via structure and the source contact structure 242 or the source dummy via structure and the source contact structure 242 is substantially equal to the source region 222 of the semiconductor devices 500E-500L. Therefore, the semiconductor device may be designed to have the following arrangements: the sum of the amount of via structures, which includes the drain via structures, the drain dummy via structures, the source via structures and the source dummy via structures, of the semiconductor device is an odd number and the sum of overlapping areas between the drain via structure and the drain contact structure 240 and between the drain dummy via structure and the drain contact structure 240 is greater than the sum of overlapping areas between the source via structure and the source contact structure 242 and between the source dummy via structure and the source contact structure 242.

[0070] Furthermore, from the result of the points 550E-550L shown in FIG. 7, it should be noted that among the semiconductor devices 500E-500L, when the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an even number, the semiconductor device having an equal amount of drain dummy via structures and source dummy via structures may show a lower thermal resistance value. For example, the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor devices 500G-500I are respectively equal to 2. The amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500G is equal to 0, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500G is equal to 2. In addition, the amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500H is equal to 2, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500H is equal to 0. Furthermore, the amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500I is equal to 1, and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device 500I is equal to 1. Compared with the semiconductor device 500G (the point 550G) and the semiconductor device 500H (the point 550H), the semiconductor device 500I (the point 550I) having an equal amount of drain dummy via structures and source dummy via structures shows a lower thermal resistance value (R thO ) while the numbers of the fin structure of the semiconductor devices 500G-500I are kept at the same value.

[0071] Therefore, the semiconductor device may be designed to have the following arrangements, when the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an even number and represented as 2N, the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device are respectively equal to N, where N is a positive integer.

[0072] Similarly, the semiconductor device may be designed to have the following arrangements, when the sum of the amount of drain via structures, the amount of drain dummy via structures, the amount of source via structures and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an even number and represented as (2N+2), the sum of the amount of drain via structures and the amount of drain dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is equal to (N+1), and the sum of the amount of source via structures and the amount of source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is equal to (N+1), where N is a positive integer.

[0073] Furthermore, according to some examples not corresponding to the subject-matter defined by the wording of the claims but useful for the understanding thereof, the semiconductor device may be designed to have the following arrangements, when the sum of the amount of via structures, which includes the drain via structures, the drain dummy via structures, the source via structures and the source dummy via structures, of the semiconductor device is an even number, the sum of overlapping areas between the drain via structure and the drain contact structure 240 and between the drain dummy via structure and the drain contact structure 240 is equal to the sum of overlapping areas between the source via structure and the source contact structure 242 and between the source dummy via structure and the source contact structure 242.

[0074] The invention provides a semiconductor device, for example, a multi-channel fin field-effect transistor (finFET) device. The semiconductor device includes fin structures arranged in parallel, drain portions of the fin structures are electrically connected through a single drain contact structure and source portions of the fin structures are electrically connected through a single source contact structure. The semiconductor device further includes a drain via structure in contact with the drain single drain contact structure and a source via structure in contact with the single source contact structure. The semiconductor device may be designed to arrange additional (dummy) bottommost via structures on the drain contact structure and / or the source contact structure to improve the thermal dissipation ability. The sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is greater than 2, and less than two times the amount of fin structures. In some embodiments, the sum of the amount of drain dummy via structures and the source dummy via structures of the semiconductor device is an odd number and represented as (2N-1), the amount of drain dummy via structures is equal to N and the amount of source dummy via structures is equal to (N-1), where N is a positive integer greater than 2.

Claims

1. A semiconductor device (500), comprising: a gate structure (230) over fin structures (204) arranged in parallel, wherein each of the fin structures (204) has a drain portion (220) and a source portion (222) on opposite sides of the gate structure (230); a drain contact structure (240) over the drain portions (220) of the fin structures (204); a source contact structure (242) over the source portions (222) of the fin structures (204); a first amount of drain via structures (250) electrically connected to the drain contact structure (240); and a second amount of source via structures (252) electrically connected to the source contact structure (242), wherein the sum of the first amount and the second amount is greater than 2, and the sum of the first amount and the second amount is less than two times an amount of the fin structures (204); wherein the sum of the first amount and the second amount is an odd number represented as (2N-1), wherein the first amount is equal to N and the second amount is equal to (N-1) or wherein the first amount is equal to (N-1) and the second amount is equal to N, where N is a positive integer, wherein N is at least 2; characterised in that the drain via structures (250) are respectively positioned overlying the drain portions (220) of an amount of fin structures (204) corresponding to the first amount; wherein the source via structures (252) are respectively positioned overlying the source portions (222) of an amount of remaining fin structures (204) corresponding to the second amount.

2. The semiconductor device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fin structures (204) are periodically arranged in a first direction with a pitch (P) and extending in a second direction, wherein the closest two drain via structures (250) are separated from each other by at least two times the pitch (P).

3. The semiconductor device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the closest two source via structures (252) are separated from each other by at least two times the pitch (P).

4. The semiconductor device as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein a first overlapping area between the first amount of drain via structures (250) and the drain contact structure (240) is less than a second overlapping area between the second amount of source via structures (252) and the source contact structure (242).

5. The semiconductor device as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein the amount of fin structures (204) is greater than the first amount and / or the second amount.

6. The semiconductor device as claimed in one of the preceding claims, further comprising: a third amount of gate via structures (254) electrically connected to the gate structure (230), wherein the third amount is less than or equal the first amount and / or the second amount.

7. The semiconductor device as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein drain via structures (250) are in contact with the drain contact structure (240), and the source via structures (252) are in contact with the source contact structure (242).

8. The semiconductor device of one of the preceding claims, wherein said drain contact structure (240) is a single drain contact structure (240) and said source contact structure (242) is a single source contact structure (242).