Contact Plug Silicide Stack for Thermal Stability and Low Resistance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor devices face challenges in achieving both thermal stability and low contact resistance, particularly in the formation of contact plugs.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor device is designed with a contact plug that includes a silicide layer with varying carbon content and a metal material layer. This structure is fabricated by forming silicon carbide layers with different carbon contents, followed by a heat treatment to form the silicide layer and metal material layer stack.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a silicide layer is formed to create an ohmic contact, then contact resistance is reduced, but thermal stability deteriorates due to overgrowth of silicide during high-temperature processing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating silicon carbide layers with different carbon contents at different positions. The first silicon carbide layer has a higher carbon content than the second silicon carbide layer, allowing each layer to serve different functions: the higher carbon content layer provides thermal stability, while the lower carbon content layer facilitates ohmic contact formation with lower contact resistance
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials by combining multiple silicon carbide layers with different carbon contents to form a silicide layer. This composite structure integrates the thermal stability provided by higher carbon content regions with the low contact resistance properties of lower carbon content regions, resolving the contradiction between thermal stability and contact resistance
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The approach improves the reliability of semiconductor devices by enhancing thermal stability and contact resistance, while preventing overgrowth of the silicide layer during high-temperature processing.
Implementation Method 1
forming a contact plug in which a silicide layer and a metal material layer are stacked by reacting the plurality of the silicon carbide layers and the metal material layer through a heat treatment
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the present invention provide a semiconductor device capable of improving both the thermal stability and contact resistance and a method for fabricating the same. According to an embodiment of the present invention, a semiconductor device may comprise: a contact plug over a substrate, wherein the contact plug includes: a silicide layer having a varying carbon content in a film, and a metal material layer over the silicide layer.