Semiconductor Capacitor Stack With Dual Dielectrics for Capacitance Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
The semiconductor industry faces challenges in forming reliable semiconductor devices at smaller sizes due to increased complexity and difficulty in fabrication processes as feature sizes decrease, requiring innovative solutions to maintain device performance and reliability.
Innovation Solution
The semiconductor device structure incorporates stacked capacitor elements with capacitor dielectric layers made of different materials, such as oxide and nitride materials with varying stress levels, which have different temperature and voltage coefficients, allowing them to compensate each other under changing conditions, and the use of specific deposition processes to control grain sizes of conductive and barrier layers for improved performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If feature sizes are decreased to increase functional density, then production efficiency and cost are improved, but fabrication complexity and difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the capacitor structure into multiple discrete layers (first capacitor dielectric layer, second capacitor dielectric layer, intermediate electrode, upper and lower electrodes) that can be formed through separate fabrication steps. This segmentation allows each layer to be optimized and formed independently, managing the complexity of fabricating reliable devices at smaller sizes while maintaining high functional density
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from planar capacitor structures to vertically stacked three-dimensional capacitor structures. By stacking capacitor elements in the vertical dimension, the design achieves higher functional density without further reducing lateral feature sizes, thereby avoiding the increased fabrication complexity associated with smaller dimensions
2Reliability
If capacitor dielectric layers are made with different materials to compensate for temperature and voltage changes, then capacitance consistency is improved, but device structure complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent assigns different dielectric materials to different spatial locations within the capacitor structure. The first capacitor dielectric layer uses a first dielectric material while the second capacitor dielectric layer uses a second dielectric material, allowing each layer to be optimized for specific local electrical characteristics and compensation requirements
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite dielectric structures combining multiple dielectric materials in a stacked configuration. This composite approach leverages the complementary properties of different materials to achieve temperature and voltage compensation, maintaining consistent capacitance while managing structural complexity through systematic material integration
3Reliability
If grain sizes of conductive and barrier layers are controlled through specific deposition processes, then device performance is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent controls grain sizes by adjusting deposition process parameters such as temperature, pressure, and deposition rate. By optimizing these parameters during the formation of conductive and barrier layers, the invention achieves desired grain size distributions that enhance device performance while managing manufacturing precision requirements
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a semiconductor structure. The semiconductor structure includes a lower electrode over a substrate, a first capacitor dielectric layer over the lower electrode, an intermediate electrode over the first capacitor dielectric layer, and a second capacitor dielectric layer is over the intermediate electrode. An upper electrode is over the second capacitor dielectric layer. The upper electrode is completely confined over the intermediate electrode. A first protection layer is completely confined over the intermediate electrode. The first protection layer covers opposing sidewalls of the upper electrode and upper surfaces of the intermediate electrode and the upper electrode.