Semiconductor Multiple Gate Structures Spacer Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current semiconductor devices face challenges in achieving optimal integration and charge carrier mobility due to limitations in gate structure design and manufacturing processes, particularly in FinFETs, which affect device performance and efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The semiconductor device incorporates a specific design with multiple gate structures and spacers on a substrate, featuring L-shaped cross-sections and varying thicknesses, along with dielectric layers and etch stop layers, to optimize spacing and material distribution, enabling efficient formation of embedded source/drain regions and improving device integration and mobility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If FinFET three-dimensional channel structure is used to reduce short channel effects, then device integration is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gate structure is segmented into multiple gates (first gate structure and second gate structure) positioned at different locations. Each gate can be independently formed and controlled, allowing the complex three-dimensional channel to be managed through modular gate segments rather than a single complex gate, thus improving integration while managing manufacturing complexity
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the device are provided with different gate structures and spacer configurations. The first region has first gate structures with specific spacer arrangements, while the second region has second gate structures with different spacer arrangements. This allows local optimization of device performance in different regions without requiring uniform complex manufacturing across the entire device
2Reliability
If multiple gate structures with different spacer configurations are used, then charge carrier mobility is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Different gate structures are provided in different regions to optimize charge carrier mobility for specific device functions. The first gate structures in the first region have spacer configurations optimized for their function, while the second gate structures in the second region have different spacer configurations optimized for their function. This local optimization improves overall device reliability without requiring all gates to have identical complex structures
Solution Approach 2:
The device is divided into multiple regions with different gate structures that can be independently optimized. Each gate structure segment can be designed with specific spacer thicknesses and configurations tailored to the performance requirements of that region, improving charge carrier mobility through localized optimization rather than uniform design
3Manufacturing precision
If precise spacer thickness control is implemented, then manufacturing precision is improved, but process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Spacer structures are formed as preliminary elements before final gate structure completion. The spacers are deposited and etched to precise thicknesses in advance, serving as templates and protective layers during subsequent processing steps. This preliminary formation of precisely-controlled spacers simplifies later manufacturing steps while maintaining high precision
Solution Approach 2:
The spacer structures serve as intermediary elements between substrate preparation and final gate formation. These spacers with precisely controlled thicknesses act as masks, protective layers, and dimensional references during manufacturing, enabling precise control of subsequent structures without requiring direct precise formation of each final component
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor device includes a substrate having a first region and a second region, a plurality of first gate structures in the first region, the first gate structures being spaced apart from each other by a first distance, a plurality of second gate structures in the second region, the second gate structures being spaced apart from each other by a second distance, a first spacer on sidewalls of the first gate structures, a dielectric layer on the first spacer, a second spacer on sidewalls of the second gate structures, and a third spacer on the second spacer.