Micron Technology Incorporated

Intel Corporation

USA As Represented by Secretary of the Navy

Ronald Allen Weimer

Don Carl Powell

John T Moore

Er-Xuan Ping

Kevin L Beaman

Lyle D Breiner

Trung Tri Doan

Cem Basceri

Lingyi A Zheng

David J Kubista

Scott Jeffrey DeBoer

Jeff A Mckee

Avishai Kepten

Michael Sendler

Randhir P S Thakur

Thomas M Graettinger

Garry Anthony Mercaldi

Dan Gealy

Durai Vishak Nirmal Ramaswamy

Yongjun Jeff Hu

Randhir P Thakur

Husam N Al-Shareef

Kyu S Min

Pai Hung Pan

Denise M Eppich

James Beck

Deepa Ratakonda

Fernando N Gonzalez

Tuman Earl Allen, Iii

Yudong Kim

Michael J Bernhardt

Vinayak Shamanna

Kolya Yastrebenetsky

Kevin Lee Baker

Denzil S Frost

Mark E Tuttle

John David Hopkins

Arup Bhattacharyya

Gordon A Haller

Klaus Florian Schuegraf

Sanjeev Sapra

Demetrius Sarigiannis

Scott J Deboer

James Mathew

Rhett T Brewer

Tejas Krishnamohan

Li Li

Max F Hineman

Christopher W Petz

Alex J Schrinsky

Chris W Hill

Christopher J Larsen

Christopher W Hill

Randy J Koval

Richard L Stocks

William R Kueber

Thomas P Thorpe

Dan Mihai Mocuta

Toshihiko Miyashita

A variety of applications can include apparatus having p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor (PMOS) transistors and n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor (NMOS) transistors with different metal silicide contacts. The active area of the NMOS transistor can include a first metal silicide having a first metal element, where the first metal silicide is a vertical lowest portion of a contact for the NMOS. The PMOS transistor can include a stressor source/drain region to a channel region of the PMOS transistor and a second metal silicide directly contacting the stressor source/drain region without containing the first metal element. The process flow to form the PMOS and NMOS transistors can enable making simultaneous contacts by a pre-silicide in the active area of the NMOS transistor, without affecting stressor source/drain regions in the PMOS transistor. The process flow and resulting structures for PMOS transistors and NMOS transistors can be used in various integrated circuits and devices.

Active area salicidation for NMOS and PMOS devices

Methods and devices are disclosed, such as those involving memory cell devices with improved charge retention characteristics. In one or more embodiments, a memory cell is provided having an active area defined by sidewalls of neighboring trenches. A layer of dielectric material is blanket deposited over the memory cell, and etched to form spacers on sidewalls of the active area. Dielectric material is formed over the active area, a charge trapping structure is formed over the dielectric material over the active area, and a control gate is formed over the charge trapping structure. In some embodiments, the charge trapping structure includes nanodots. In some embodiments, the width of the spacers is between about 130% and about 170% of the thickness of the dielectric material separating the charge trapping material and an upper surface of the active area.

Thickened sidewall dielectric for memory cell

Embodiments of the present disclosure describe techniques and configurations for a memory device comprising a memory array having a plurality of wordlines disposed in a memory region of a die. Fill regions may be disposed between respective pairs of adjacent wordlines of the plurality of wordlines. The fill regions may include a first dielectric layer and a second dielectric layer disposed on the first dielectric layer. The first dielectric layer may comprise organic (e.g., carbon-based) spin-on dielectric material (CSOD). The second dielectric layer may comprise a different dielectric material than the first dielectric layer, such as, for example, inorganic dielectric material. Other embodiments may be described and/or claimed.

Dual-layer dielectric in memory device

A memory array has first and second memory cells over a semiconductor and an isolation region extending into the semiconductor. The isolation region includes an air gap between charge-storage structures of the first and second memory cells and a thickness of dielectric over the air gap and contained between the first and second memory cells.

Forming air gaps in memory arrays and memory arrays with air gaps thus formed

Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed towards use of an etch process post wordline definition to improve data retention in a flash memory device. In one embodiment, a method includes forming a plurality of wordline structures on a substrate, wherein individual wordline structures of the plurality of wordline structures include a control gate having an electrically conductive material and a cap having an electrically insulative material formed on the control gate, depositing an electrically insulative material to form a liner on a surface of the individual wordline structures, and etching the liner to remove at least a portion of the liner. Other embodiments may be described and/or claimed.

Use of etch process post wordline definition to improve data retention in a flash memory device

Methods of forming air gaps in memory arrays and memory arrays with air gaps thus formed are disclosed. One such method may include forming an isolation region, having a first dielectric, through a charge-storage structure that is over a semiconductor, the isolation region extending into the semiconductor; forming a second dielectric over the isolation region and charge-storage structure; and forming an air gap in the isolation region so that the air gap passes through the charge-storage structure and so that a thickness of the first dielectric is between the air gap and the second dielectric.

The present disclosure provides methods and systems for controlling temperature. The method has particular utility in connection with controlling temperature in a deposition process, e.g., in depositing a heat-reflective material via CVD. One exemplary embodiment provides a method that involves monitoring a first temperature outside the deposition chamber and a second temperature inside the deposition chamber. An internal temperature in the deposition chamber can be increased in accordance with a ramp profile by (a) comparing a control temperature to a target temperature, and (b) selectively delivering heat to the deposition chamber in response to a result of the comparison. The target temperature may be determined in accordance with the ramp profile, but the control temperature in one implementation alternates between the first temperature and the second temperature.

Methods and systems for controlling temperature during microfeature workpiece processing, E.G., CVD deposition

The present disclosure provides small scale capacitors (e.g., DRAM capacitors) and methods of forming such capacitors. One exemplary implementation provides a method of fabricating a capacitor that includes sequentially forming a first electrode, a dielectric layer, and a second electrode. At least one of the electrodes may be formed by a) reacting two precursors to deposit a first conductive layer at a first deposition rate, and b) depositing a second conductive layer at a second, lower deposition rate by depositing a precursor layer of one precursor at least one monolayer thick and exposing that precursor layer to another precursor to form a nanolayer reaction product. The second conductive layer may be in contact with the dielectric layer and have a thickness of no greater than about 50 &#x212b;.

Methods for forming small-scale capacitor structures

A flash memory integrated circuit and a method for fabricating the same. A gate stack includes an initial oxide layer directly in contact with a silicon layer, defining an oxide-silicon interface therebetween. Additional oxide material is formed substantially uniformly along the oxide-silicon interface. Polysilicon grain boundaries at the interface are thereby passivated after etching. The interface can be formed between a tunnel oxide and a floating gate, and passivating the grain boundaries reduces erase variability. Oxide in an upper storage dielectric layer is enhanced in the dilute steam oxidation. The thin oxide layers serve as diffusion paths to enhance uniform distribution of OH species across the buried interfaces being oxidized.

Use of dilute steam ambient for improvement of flash devices

Some embodiments include memory cells having vertically-stacked charge-trapping zones spaced from one another by dielectric material. The dielectric material may comprise high-k material. One or more of the charge-trapping zones may comprise metallic material. Such metallic material may be present as a plurality of discrete isolated islands, such as nanodots. Some embodiments include methods of forming memory cells in which two charge-trapping zones are formed over tunnel dielectric, with the zones being vertically displaced relative to one another, and with the zone closest to the tunnel dielectric having deeper traps than the other zone. Some embodiments include electronic systems comprising memory cells. Some embodiments include methods of programming memory cells having vertically-stacked charge-trapping zones.

Memory cells containing charge-trapping zones

Methods of filling cavities or trenches. More specifically, methods of filling a cavity or trench in a semiconductor layer are provided. The methods include depositing a first dielectric layer into the trench by employing a conformal deposition process. Next, the first dielectric layer is etched to create a recess in the trench within the first dielectric layer. The recesses are then filled with a second dielectric layer by employing a high density plasma deposition process. The techniques may be particularly useful in filling cavities and trenches having narrow widths and/or high aspect ratios.

Methods for filling trenches in a semiconductor material

Some embodiments include methods of utilizing polysilazane in forming non-volatile memory cells. The memory cells may be multi-level cells (MLCs). The polysilazane may be converted to silicon nitride, silicon dioxide, or silicon oxynitride with thermal processing and exposure to an ambient that contains one or both of oxygen and nitrogen. The methods may include using the polysilazane in forming a charge trapping layer of a non-volatile memory cell. The methods may alternatively, or additionally include using the polysilazane in forming intergate dielectric material of a non-volatile memory cell. Some embodiments include methods of forming memory cells of a NAND memory array.

Methods of forming memory cells

Growing community of inventors

Boise, ID, United States of America

Ronald Allen Weimer