Sandisk Technologies Inc.

Jixin Yu

Johann Alsmeier

Daxin Mao

Hiroyuki Ogawa

Zhenyu Lu

James K Kai

Yanli Zhang

Tong Zhang

Chun Ge

Yan Li

Satoshi Shimizu

Yasuo Kasagi

Fumiaki Toyama

Jin Liu

Kensuke Yamaguchi

Alexander Chu

Yoko Furihata

Tae-Kyung Kim

Yohei Masamori

Kazuyo Matsumoto

Jian Feng Chen

Yuki Mizutani

Koichi Matsuno

Wenguang Shi

Koji Miyata

Fabo Yu

Makoto Yoshida

Xin Yuan Li

Raghuveer S Makala

Masaaki Higashitani

George Matamis

Ching-Huang Lu

Hiroyuki Kinoshita

Henry Chien

Yao-Sheng Lee

Michiaki Sano

Chun-Ming Wang

Tai-Yuan Tseng

Andrew C Lin

Qui V Nguyen

Kota Funayama

Jong Hak Yuh

Kenneth Louie

Anirudh Amarnath

Hiro Kinoshita

Kengo Kajiwara

Yen-Lung Li

Kazuto Watanabe

Sung Tae Lee

Chenche Huang

Motoki Kawasaki

Akira Takahashi

Haruki Urata

Kento Kitamura

Andrey Serov

Arata Okuyama

Yiyang Gong

Lauren Matsumoto

Xun Gu

Xiaolong Hu

Junichi Ariyoshi

Jiyin Xu

A three-dimensional memory device includes an alternating stack of insulating layers and electrically conductive layers located over a substrate, memory opening fill structures including a respective vertical semiconductor channel and a respective memory film, and support pillar structures including a respective dummy vertical semiconductor channel, a respective dummy memory film, and a vertical stack of dielectric spacer fins located at levels of the electrically conductive layers and interposed between the electrically conductive layers and the respective dummy memory film.

Three-dimensional memory device with finned support pillar structures and method of forming the same

A three-dimensional memory device includes layer stacks located over a substrate and laterally spaced apart from each other by backside trenches. Each of the layer stacks includes a respective alternating stack of insulating layers and electrically conductive layers. Memory openings vertically extend through a respective one of the alternating stacks and are filled with a respective memory opening fill structure. Each of the memory opening fill structures includes a respective vertical semiconductor channel and a respective vertical stack of memory elements. Each backside trench fill structure includes a respective row of backside trench bridge structures that are more distal from the substrate than a most distal one of the electrically conductive layers is from the substrate. The backside trench bridge structures can provide structural support during a replacement process that forms the electrically conductive layers.

Three-dimensional memory device including backside trench support structures and methods of forming the same

A vertically alternating sequence of continuous insulating layers and continuous sacrificial material layers is formed over a substrate. Memory stack structures are formed through the vertically alternating sequence. The vertically alternating sequence is divided into alternating stacks of insulating layers and sacrificial material layers by forming backside trenches therethrough. Each neighboring pair of alternating stacks is laterally spaced apart from each other by a respective backside trench. The sacrificial material layers are replaced with multipart layers. Each multipart layer includes a respective electrically conductive layer that laterally extends continuously between a respective neighboring pair of backside trenches and at least one dielectric material plate that is a remaining portion of a sacrificial material layer, is laterally enclosed by the respective electrically conductive layer, and is laterally spaced from a most proximal one of the backside trenches by a uniform lateral offset distance.

Three-dimensional memory device including self-aligned dielectric isolation regions for connection via structures and method of making the same

An alternating stack of insulating layers and spacer material layers is formed over a substrate. A staircase region having stepped surfaces is formed by patterning the alternating stack. Memory opening fill structures are formed in a memory array region, and support pillar structures are formed in the staircase region. Each of the memory stack structures includes a memory film and a vertical semiconductor channel. The support pillar structures include first support pillar structures and having a first maximum lateral dimension and second support pillar structures having a second maximum lateral dimension that is less than the first maximum lateral dimension and interlaced with the first support pillar structures. The sacrificial material layers are replaced with electrically conductive layers. The second support pillar structures are positioned interstitially among the first support pillar structures and contact via structures that are formed on the electrically conductive layers to provide additional structural support.

Three-dimensional memory device containing asymmetric, different size support pillars and method for making the same

Three-dimensional memory devices in the form of a memory die includes an alternating stack of insulating layers and electrically conductive layers located over a substrate, and memory stack structures extending through the alternating stack, in which each of the memory stack structures includes a memory film and a vertical semiconductor channel contacting an inner sidewall of the memory film. Bit lines are electrically connected to an end portion of a respective one of the vertical semiconductor channels. Bump connection via structures contact a top surface of a respective one of the bit lines, in which each of the bump connection via structures has a greater lateral dimension along a lengthwise direction of the bit lines than along a widthwise direction of the bit lines. Metallic bump structures of another semiconductor die contact respective ones of the bump connection via structures to make respective electrical connections between the two dies.

Three-dimensional memory device having bonding structures connected to bit lines and methods of making the same

A three-dimensional memory device includes a pair of alternating stacks of insulating layers and electrically conductive layers located over a semiconductor region, and laterally spaced from each other by a backside trench, memory stack structures extending through the pair of alternating, each memory stack structure containing a vertical semiconductor channel and a memory film, and a backside contact assembly located in the backside trench. The backside contact assembly includes an isolation dielectric spacer contacting the pair of alternating stacks, a conductive liner contacting inner sidewalls of the isolation dielectric spacer and a top surface of the semiconductor region, and composite non-metallic core containing at least one outer dielectric fill material portion that is laterally enclosed by a lower portion of the conductive liner and a dielectric core contacting an inner sidewall of the at least one outer dielectric fill material portion.

Memory die containing stress reducing backside contact via structures and method of making the same

Memory dies on a wafer may include multiple memory blocks including bit lines extending along different directions. A memory die may include a first-type plane including first memory blocks and a second-type plane including second memory blocks. In this case, memory blocks having different bit line directions may be formed within a same memory die. An exposure field may include multiple types of memory dies that are oriented in different orientations. The bit line directions may be oriented differently in the multiple types of memory dies. Each lithographic exposure process may include a first step in which lithographic patterns in first exposure fields are oriented in one direction, and a second step in which lithographic patterns in second exposure fields are oriented in another direction. The different orientations of bit lines and word lines may change local directions of stress to reduce wafer distortion.

Memory die having wafer warpage reduction through stress balancing employing rotated three-dimensional memory arrays and method of making the same

A etch stop semiconductor rail is formed within a source semiconductor layer. A laterally alternating stack of dielectric rails and sacrificial semiconductor rails is formed over the source semiconductor layer and the etch stop semiconductor rail. After formation of a vertically alternating stack of insulating layers and spacer material layers, memory stack structures are formed through the vertically alternating stack and through interfaces between the sacrificial semiconductor rails and the dielectric rails. A backside trench is formed through the vertically alternating stack employing the etch stop semiconductor rail as an etch stop structure. Source strap rails providing lateral electrical contact to semiconductor channels of the memory stack structures are formed by replacement of sacrificial semiconductor rails with source strap rails.

Bulb-shaped memory stack structures for direct source contact in three-dimensional memory device

A contact level silicon oxide layer and a silicon nitride layer is formed over a semiconductor device on a semiconductor substrate. A contact via cavity extending to the semiconductor device is formed. A lower contact via structure portion is formed and recessed between top and bottom surface of the silicon nitride layer. An upper contact via structure portion including a hydrogen diffusion barrier material is formed in a remaining volume of the contact via cavity to provide a contact via structure. A three-dimensional memory array is formed over the silicon nitride layer. Metal interconnect structures are formed to provide electrical connection between the contact via structure and a node of the three-dimensional memory array. The hydrogen diffusion barrier material and the silicon nitride layer block downward diffusion of hydrogen.

Three-dimensional memory device containing hydrogen diffusion barrier structures for CMOS under array architecture and method of making the same

Contacts to peripheral devices extending through multiple tier structures of a three-dimensional memory device can be formed with minimal additional processing steps. First peripheral via cavities through a first tier structure can be formed concurrently with formation of first memory openings. Sacrificial via fill structures can be formed in the first peripheral via cavities concurrently with formation of sacrificial memory opening fill structures that are formed in the first memory openings. Second peripheral via cavities through a second tier structure can be formed concurrently with formation of word line contact via cavities that extend to top surfaces of electrically conductive layers in the first and second tier structures. After removal of the sacrificial via fill structures, the first and second peripheral via cavities can be filled with a conductive material to form peripheral contact via structures concurrently with formation of word line contact via structures.

Multi-tier memory device with through-stack peripheral contact via structures and method of making thereof

Lower level metal interconnect structures are formed over a substrate with semiconductor devices thereupon. A semiconductor material layer and an alternating stack of spacer dielectric layers and insulating layers is formed over the lower level metal interconnect structures. An array of memory stack structures is formed through the alternating stack. Trenches are formed through the alternating stack such that a staircase region is located farther away from a threshold lateral distance from the trenches, while neighboring staircase regions are formed within the threshold lateral distance from the trenches. Portions of the spacer dielectric layers proximal to the trenches are replaced with electrically conductive layers, while a remaining portion of the alternating stack is present in the staircase region. At least one through-memory-level via structure can be formed through the remaining portions of the spacer dielectric layers and the insulating layers to provide a vertically conductive path through a memory-level assembly.

Through-memory-level via structures between staircase regions in a three-dimensional memory device and method of making thereof

A semiconductor structure includes a memory-level assembly located over a substrate and including at least one alternating stack and memory stack structures vertically extending through the at least one alternating stack. Each of the at least one an alternating stack includes alternating layers of respective insulating layers and respective electrically conductive layers, and each of the electrically conductive layers in the at least one alternating stack includes a respective opening such that a periphery of a respective spacer dielectric portion located in the opening contacts a sidewall of the respective electrically conductive layers. At least one through-memory-level via structure vertically extends through each of the spacer dielectric portions and the insulating layers.

Within-array through-memory-level via structures and method of making thereof

A three-dimensional memory device includes a first alternating stack of first insulating layers and first electrically conductive layers located over a top surface of a substrate, such that each of the first insulating layers and the first electrically conductive layers includes a respective horizontally-extending portion and a respective non-horizontally-extending portion, memory stack structures extending through a memory array region of the first alternating stack that includes the horizontally-extending portions of the first electrically conductive layers, such that each of the memory stack structures comprises a memory film and a vertical semiconductor channel, a mesa structure located over the substrate, such that each respective non-horizontally-extending portion of the first insulating layers and the first electrically conductive layers is located over a sidewall of the mesa structure, and contact structures that contact a respective one of the non-horizontally-extending portions of the first electrically conductive layers.

Three-dimensional memory device having L-shaped word lines and a support structure and methods of making the same

Discrete silicon nitride portions can be formed at each level of electrically conductive layers in an alternating stack of insulating layers and the electrically conductive layers. The discrete silicon nitride portions can be employed as charge trapping material portions, each of which is laterally contacted by a tunneling dielectric portion on the front side, and by a blocking dielectric portion on the back side. The tunneling dielectric portions may be formed as discrete material portions or portions within a tunneling dielectric layer. The blocking dielectric portions may be formed as discrete material portions or portions within a blocking dielectric layer. The discrete silicon nitride portions can be formed by depositing a charge trapping material layer and selectively removing portions of the charge trapping material layer at levels of the insulating layers. Various schemes may be employed to singulate the charge trapping material layer.

Three dimensional memory device containing discrete silicon nitride charge storage regions

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Milpitas, CA, United States of America

Jixin Yu