3D Memory Separation Structure for Dense, Lower-Cost NAND Stacks

The patent transitions from two-dimensional planar device architecture to three-dimensional vertical channel structures. The vertical channels extend through stacked interlayer dielectric layers and gate electrodes, enabling increased integration density by utilizing the vertical dimension rather than relying solely on planar scaling. This dimensional change allows higher capacity without requiring increasingly complex fine pattern formation apparatuses.

The device is segmented into multiple stacked layers including interlayer dielectric layers and gate electrodes, with vertical channel structures penetrating through these layers. This segmentation into discrete functional layers enables modular manufacturing processes, where each layer can be formed and processed separately, reducing the need for high-priced apparatuses while maintaining high integration density.

The patent forms the vertical channel structures to extend through the entire depth of the stacked interlayer dielectric layers and gate electrodes before subsequent processing steps. This preliminary formation of deep vertical channels simplifies later manufacturing steps by establishing the three-dimensional architecture early, avoiding the need for complex sequential patterning and etching processes that would otherwise be required to create the vertical structure.

The vertical channel structures are nested within the stacked architecture of interlayer dielectric layers and gate electrodes, with channels penetrating through multiple layers. This nested configuration allows compact integration of multiple functional elements in a hierarchical arrangement, increasing density while maintaining relatively simple manufacturing processes through conformal deposition and vertical etching techniques.