Oxide Thin-Film Transistor Contacts With Indium Barrier Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The semiconductor industry faces challenges in manufacturing low-cost, high-performance, and low-power integrated circuits due to the increased complexity introduced by miniaturization, which complicates the integration of various devices in the fabrication process.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution involves forming a thin film transistor with an oxide semiconductor layer over an interconnect structure, where indium-containing features are formed before the source/drain contacts to reduce contact resistance and the Schottky barrier, thereby improving device performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If miniaturization is used to improve production efficiency and lower costs, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The method performs preliminary actions by forming the indium-containing feature before forming the source/drain contacts. This preliminary placement of indium reduces the Schottky barrier and contact resistance in advance, ensuring low-contact resistance is achieved without requiring complex post-processing steps, thus resolving the contradiction between productivity and fabrication complexity.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional contact formation is used, then manufacturing process is simple, but contact resistance and Schottky barrier are high
Solution Approach 1:
The indium-containing feature acts as an intermediary layer between the source/drain contact and the oxide semiconductor layer. This intermediary presence of indium reduces the Schottky barrier and contact resistance without requiring complex process changes, maintaining ease of manufacture while significantly improving electrical contact reliability.
3Reliability
If indium-containing features are formed before source/drain contacts, then contact resistance is reduced, but manufacturing process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The method merges the indium deposition step with the existing fabrication sequence by forming the indium-containing feature as part of the pre-contact preparation process. This integration allows the beneficial effect of reduced contact resistance to be achieved without adding significant process complexity, as the indium formation is combined with other preparatory steps before contact formation.
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
This approach enhances the performance of the resulting semiconductor device by reducing contact resistance and the Schottky barrier, allowing for improved current flow and overall device efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
indium-containing features are formed before the source/drain contacts to reduce contact resistance and the Schottky barrier
Data Source
AI summary
Semiconductor structures and methods for manufacturing the same are provided. The semiconductor structure includes an interconnect structure and an electrode layer formed over the interconnect structure. The semiconductor structure also includes a gate dielectric layer formed over the electrode layer and an oxide semiconductor layer formed over the gate dielectric layer. The semiconductor structure also includes an indium-containing feature covering a surface of the oxide semiconductor layer and a source/drain contact formed over the indium-containing feature.