Nanosheet PDN With Spacer-Guided Rear Contact Alignment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge of efficiently transmitting power to highly-integrated circuit devices with power delivery networks (PDNs) in integrated circuit devices is not adequately addressed by existing technologies.
Innovation Solution
The integrated circuit device incorporates a nanosheet stacked structure with source/drain regions, gate electrodes, and a power delivery network (PDN) design that includes a rear contact plug connected to source/drain regions through a spacer layer, enhancing power delivery reliability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If power delivery network (PDN) is implemented in highly-integrated circuit devices, then power transmission efficiency is improved, but manufacturing complexity and alignment precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer layer acts as an intermediary structure between the rear contact plug and the inter-gate insulating layer. It provides a reference surface for forming the rear contact plug, ensuring precise alignment with the source/drain regions without requiring direct alignment between the rear contact plug and the source/drain regions, thus reducing alignment precision requirements while maintaining power transmission efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The spacer layer is formed in advance before forming the rear contact plug. This preliminary action creates a predefined reference structure that guides the subsequent formation of the rear contact plug, ensuring accurate alignment with the source/drain regions and simplifying the manufacturing process
2Reliability
If rear contact plug is directly connected to source/drain regions, then power delivery reliability is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases due to alignment difficulties
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer layer serves as a mediating structure that simplifies the manufacturing process. Instead of directly aligning the rear contact plug with the source/drain regions (which is complex), the spacer layer provides an intermediate reference surface, making the manufacturing process less complex while still ensuring the rear contact plug connects to the source/drain regions for reliable power delivery
Solution Approach 2:
The power delivery structure is segmented into multiple components: the spacer layer as a reference structure, the rear contact plug as the power delivery element, and the inter-gate insulating layer as the insulating medium. This segmentation allows each component to be formed independently with appropriate process optimization, reducing overall manufacturing complexity while maintaining reliability
Data Source
AI summary
An integrated circuit device includes: a rear insulating layer; a nanosheet stacked structure arranged on the rear insulating layer and including a plurality of nanosheets; a pair of source/drain regions positioned on sides of the nanosheet stacked structure in a first horizontal direction; a gate electrode extending in a second horizontal direction intersecting the first horizontal direction, on the nanosheet stacked structure; a contact plug connected to at least one of the pair of source/drain regions; a rear contact plug passing through the rear insulating layer and connected to at least one of the pair of source/drain regions; and a spacer layer including a contact spacer layer surrounding part of a side surface of the rear contact plug.