Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Hung-Hsu Chen

Wei-Yip Loh

Chih-Wei Chang

Yan-Ming Tsai

Ming-Hsing Tsai

Sheng-Hsuan Lin

Li-Wei Chu

Yu-Kai Chen

Ying-Chi Su

Chih-wei Chang

Hong-Mao Lee

Ching-Yi Chen

Yu-Wen Cheng

Yu-Shiuan Wang

Yu-Ming Huang

Chun-Hsien Huang

Wei-Jung Lin

Cheng-Tung Lin

Ya-Yi Cheng

Yee-Chia Yeo

Huicheng Chang

Shiu-Ko JangJian

Liang-Yin Chen

Su-Hao Liu

Chi-Cheng Hung

Yu-Sheng Wang

Hung-Yi Huang

Jun-Nan Nian

Meng-Han Chou

Kuan-Yu Yeh

Raghunath Putikam

Yi-Ning Tai

Hung-Chang Hsu

Yi-Hsiang Chao

Yu-Hsiang Liao

Peng-Hao Hsu

Chih-Sheng Chou

Ting-Wei Weng

Shu-Ting Yang

A pre-cleaning technique described herein may be used to remove native oxides and/or other contaminants from a semiconductor device in a manner in which the likelihood of chopping, clipping, and/or sidewall spacer thickness reduction is reduced. As described herein, a protection layer is formed on a capping layer over a gate structure of a transistor. A pre-cleaning operation is then performed to remove native oxides from the top surface of a source/drain region of the transistor. In the pre-cleaning operation, the protection layer is consumed instead of the material of the capping layer. In this way, the use of the protection layer reduces the likelihood of removal of material from the capping layer and/or reduces the amount of material that is removed from the capping layer during the pre-cleaning operation.

Semiconductor device pre-cleaning

A semiconductor structure and a method for forming a semiconductor structure are provided. The semiconductor structure includes an epitaxial structure and a metal silicide layer. The epitaxial structure includes a semiconductor material. The metal silicide layer is disposed on the epitaxial structure. The metal silicide layer includes the semiconductor material, a first metal material and a second metal material. An atomic size of the first metal material is greater than an atomic size of the second metal material, and a concentration of the first metal material in the metal silicide layer varies along a thickness direction.

Semiconductor structure and manufacturing method thereof

A method for manufacturing a semiconductor structure includes: forming a patterned structure which includes a first semiconductor portion and a second semiconductor portion, the first and second semiconductor portions having different materials; and performing an oxide formation process to oxidize the first and second semiconductor portions such that a first oxidation layer formed on the first semiconductor portion has a thickness less than that of a second oxidation layer formed on the second semiconductor portion.

Method for forming dual silicide in manufacturing process of semiconductor structure

Embodiments disclosed herein relate generally to forming an effective metal diffusion barrier in sidewalls of epitaxy source/drain regions. In an embodiment, a structure includes an active area having a source/drain region on a substrate, a dielectric layer over the active area and having a sidewall aligned with the sidewall of the source/drain region, and a conductive feature along the sidewall of the dielectric layer to the source/drain region. The source/drain region has a sidewall and a lateral surface extending laterally from the sidewall of the source/drain region, and the source/drain region further includes a nitrided region extending laterally from the sidewall of the source/drain region into the source/drain region. The conductive feature includes a silicide region along the lateral surface of the source/drain region and along at least a portion of the sidewall of the source/drain region.

Contact with a silicide region

An ammonium fluoride gas may be used to form a protection layer for one or more interlayer dielectric layers, one or more insulating caps, and/or one or more source/drain regions of a semiconductor device during a pre-clean etch process. The protection layer can be formed through an oversupply of nitrogen trifluoride during the pre-clean etch process. The oversupply of nitrogen trifluoride causes an increased formation of ammonium fluoride, which coats the interlayer dielectric layer(s), the insulating cap(s), and/or the source/drain region(s) with a thick protection layer. The protection layer protects the interlayer dielectric layer(s), the insulating cap(s), and/or the source/drain region(s) during the pre-clean process from being etched by fluorine ions formed during the pre-clean process.

Ammonium fluoride pre-clean protection

The present disclosure provides a method to enlarge the process window for forming a source/drain contact. The method may include receiving a workpiece that includes a source/drain feature exposed in a source/drain opening defined between two gate structures, conformally depositing a dielectric layer over sidewalls of the source/drain opening and a top surface of the source/drain feature, anisotropically etching the dielectric layer to expose the source/drain feature, performing an implantation process to the dielectric layer, and after the performing of the implantation process, performing a pre-clean process to the workpiece. The implantation process includes a non-zero tilt angle.

Deposition window enlargement

A semiconductor device with multiple silicide regions is provided. In embodiments a first silicide precursor and a second silicide precursor are deposited on a source/drain region. A first silicide with a first phase is formed, and the second silicide precursor is insoluble within the first phase of the first silicide. The first phase of the first silicide is modified to a second phase of the first silicide, and the second silicide precursor being soluble within the second phase of the first silicide. A second silicide is formed with the second silicide precursor and the second phase of the first silicide.

Method of manufacturing semiconductor devices with multiple silicide regions

A device includes a fin extending from a semiconductor substrate, a gate stack over and along a sidewall of the fin, an isolation region surrounding the gate stack, an epitaxial source/drain region in the fin and adjacent the gate stack, and a source/drain contact extending through the isolation region, including a first silicide region in the epitaxial source/drain region, the first silicide region including NiSi, a second silicide region on the first silicide region, the second silicide region including TiSi, and a conductive material on the second silicide region.

Contact structure for semiconductor device and method

Techniques described herein enable respective (different) types of metal silicide layers to be formed for p-type source/drain regions and n-type source/drain regions in a selective manner. For example, a p-type metal silicide layer may be selectively formed over a p-type source/drain region (e.g., such that the p-type metal silicide layer is not formed over the n-type source/drain region) and an n-type metal silicide layer may be formed over the n-type source/drain region (which may be selective or non-selective). This provides a low Schottky barrier height between the p-type metal silicide layer and the p-type source/drain region, as well as a low Schottky barrier height between the n-type metal silicide layer and the n-type source/drain region. This reduces the contact resistance for both p-type source/drain regions and n-type source/drain regions.

Selective dual silicide formation

Generally, examples are provided relating to conductive features that include a barrier layer, and to methods thereof. In an embodiment, a metal layer is deposited in an opening through a dielectric layer(s) to a source/drain region. The metal layer is along the source/drain region and along a sidewall of the dielectric layer(s) that at least partially defines the opening. The metal layer is nitrided, which includes performing a multiple plasma process that includes at least one directional-dependent plasma process. A portion of the metal layer remains un-nitrided by the multiple plasma process. A silicide region is formed, which includes reacting the un-nitrided portion of the metal layer with a portion of the source/drain region. A conductive material is disposed in the opening on the nitrided portions of the metal layer.

Conductive feature formation and structure

A nitrogen plasma treatment is used on an adhesion layer of a contact plug. As a result of the nitrogen plasma treatment, nitrogen is incorporated into the adhesion layer. When a contact plug is deposited in the opening, an interlayer of a metal nitride is formed between the contact plug and the adhesion layer. A nitrogen plasma treatment is used on an opening in an insulating layer. As a result of the nitrogen plasma treatment, nitrogen is incorporated into the insulating layer at the opening. When a contact plug is deposited in the opening, an interlayer of a metal nitride is formed between the contact plug and the insulating layer.

Treatment for adhesion improvement

A method includes etching a dielectric layer of a substrate to form an opening in the dielectric layer, forming a metal layer extending into the opening, performing an anneal process, so that a bottom portion of the metal layer reacts with a semiconductor region underlying the metal layer to form a source/drain region, performing a plasma treatment process on the substrate using a process gas including hydrogen gas and a nitrogen-containing gas to form a silicon-and-nitrogen-containing layer, and depositing a metallic material on the silicon-and-nitrogen-containing layer.

Barrier-free approach for forming contact plugs

Semiconductor devices with stacked silicide regions

Growing community of inventors

Tainan, Taiwan

Hung-Hsu Chen