Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

TSMC Nanjing Company, Limited

Taiwan Semiconducor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.

Tze-Chung Lin

Li-Te S Lin

Pinyen Lin

Han-Yu Lin

Fang-Wei Lee

Chansyun David Yang

Yi-Ruei Jhan

Fo-Ju Lin

Chao-Hsien Huang

Akira Mineji

Jung-Hao Chang

Yi-Chen Lo

Yi-Lun Chen

Kenichi Sano

Chia-Chien Kuang

Chun-Hung Lee

Tzer-Min Shen

Chih-Ching Wang

Gwan-Sin Chang

Chun-Yu Chen

Tzu-Li Lee

Hsiu-Hao Tsao

Wei-Lun Chen

Chung-Shu Wu

Shih-Chiang Chen

Szu-Hua Chen

Cheng-Tzu Yang

Raghunath Putikam

Kai-Tak Lam

Che-Chi Shih

Li-Te Lin

The present disclosure describes a semiconductor device with substantially uniform gate regions and a method for forming the same. The method includes forming a fin structure on a substrate, the fin structure including one or more nanostructures. The method further includes removing a portion of the fin structure to expose an end of the one or more nanostructures and etching the end of the one or more nanostructures with one or more etching cycles. Each etching cycle includes purging the fin structure with hydrogen fluoride (HF), etching the end of the one or more nanostructures with a gas mixture of fluorine (F) and HF, and removing an exhaust gas mixture including an etching byproduct. The method further includes forming an inner spacer in the etched end of the one or more nanostructures.

Method for fabricating a semiconductor device including etching nanostructures

A device includes a first semiconductor structure, a second semiconductor structure, and an isolation structure which is disposed between the first and second semiconductor structures, and which includes a dielectric material having a dielectric constant higher than 8 and lower than 16. A method for manufacturing the device is also disclosed.

Isolation structure for semiconductor device

The present disclosure describes a method that includes forming a fin structure with a stacked fin portion on a substrate. The stacked fin portion includes a first semiconductor layer and a second semiconductor layer, in which the second semiconductor layer includes germanium. The method further includes etching the fin structure to form an opening and etching a portion of the second semiconductor layer with a fluorine-containing gas through the opening.

Dry etching of semiconductor structures with fluorine-containing gases

A semiconductor device structure is provided. The semiconductor device structure includes forming semiconductor device structure includes a gate stack wrapping around a plurality of nanowire structures. The gate stack includes a first portion above the plurality of nanowire structures and second portions between the nanowire structures. The semiconductor device structure further includes a gate spacer layer along a sidewall of the first portion of the gate stack, and a plurality of inner spacer layers along sidewalls of the second portions of the gate stack. The gate spacer layer has a first carbon concentration, the inner spacer layers have a second carbon concentration, and the second carbon concentration is lower than the first carbon concentration.

Semiconductor device structure with inner spacer layer

A method for forming a semiconductor structure includes forming a fin on a semiconductor substrate. The fin includes channel layers and sacrificial layers stacked one on top of the other in an alternating fashion. The method also includes removing a portion of the fin to form a first opening and expose vertical sidewalls of the channel layers and the sacrificial layers, epitaxially growing a source/drain feature in the first opening from the exposed vertical sidewalls of the channel layers and the sacrificial layers, removing another portion of the fin to form a second opening to expose a vertical sidewall of the source/drain feature, depositing a dielectric layer in the second opening to cover the exposed vertical sidewall of the source/drain feature, and replacing the sacrificial layers with a metal gate structure in the second opening. The dielectric layer separates the source/drain feature from contacting the metal gate structure.

Inner spacer formation in multi-gate transistors

A semiconductor device includes a substrate, a semiconductor fin protruding from the substrate, an isolation layer disposed above the substrate, a dielectric fin with a bottom portion embedded in the isolation layer, and a gate structure over top and sidewall surfaces of the semiconductor fin and the dielectric fin. The semiconductor fin has a first sidewall and a second sidewall facing away from the first sidewall. The isolation layer includes a first portion disposed on the first sidewall of the semiconductor fin and a second portion disposed on the second sidewall of the semiconductor fin. A top portion of the dielectric fin includes an air pocket with a top opening sealed by the gate structure.

Method for FinFet fabrication and structure thereof

A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device includes: forming a patterned hard mask on a patterned structure disposed on a substrate, such that a hard mask portion of the patterned hard mask is disposed on a fin portion of the patterned structure; and laterally trimming the hard mask portion by a lateral etching process. The lateral etching process includes a radical etching process and a chemical etching process. Alternatively, the lateral etching process includes a radical etching process, a plasma etching process, or a combination thereof, and a cleaning process.

Hard mask trimming in method for manufacturing semiconductor device

A technique for semiconductor manufacturing is provided. The technique includes the operations as follows. A semiconductor structure having a first material is received. A plurality of first main etches are performed to the semiconductor structure for a plurality of first durations under the first etching chemistry. A plurality of pumping operations are performed for a plurality of pumping durations, each of the pumping operations being prior to each of the first main etches. Each of the first durations is in a range of from about 1 second to about 2.5 seconds.

Technique for semiconductor manufacturing

A method for forming a semiconductor device structure is provided. The method includes forming first semiconductor layers and second semiconductor layers on a substrate, and the first semiconductor layers and the second semiconductor layers are alternately stacked. The method includes forming a dummy gate structure over the first semiconductor layers and the second semiconductor layers, and removing a portion of the first semiconductor layers and second semiconductor layers to form a S/D trench. The method also includes removing the second semiconductor layers to form a recess connected to the S/D trench. The method includes forming a dummy dielectric layer in the recess after the dummy gate structure is formed, and the dummy dielectric layer is exposed by the S/D trench. The method includes removing a portion of the dummy dielectric layer to form a cavity and forming an inner spacer layer in the cavity.

Method for semiconductor device structure

A method of fabricating a semiconductor device is disclosed. The method includes providing a semiconductor substrate. Alternating layers of a first semiconductor layer and a second semiconductor layer are formed. The first semiconductor layer is formed of a first semiconductor material, the second semiconductor layer formed of a second semiconductor material different from the first semiconductor material. The alternating layers of the first semiconductor layer and the second semiconductor layer are patterned to form stacks of the alternating layers and to expose lateral edges of the alternating layers in the stacks. Under etch conditions, the lateral edges of the alternating layers in the stacks are exposed to etchant to selectively etch recesses in the lateral edges of the first semiconductor layer such that a size of the recesses is substantially uniform.

Semiconductor devices and methods of manufacturing thereof

The present disclosure provides a semiconductor fabrication apparatus. The semiconductor apparatus includes a processing chamber for etching; a substrate stage integrated in the processing chamber and being configured to secure a semiconductor wafer; a reflective mirror configured inside the processing chamber to reflect thermal energy from the heating mechanism toward the semiconductor wafer; and a heating mechanism embedded in the process chamber and is operable to perform a baking process to remove a by-product generated during the etching. The heating mechanism is integrated between the reflective mirror and a gas distribution plate of the processing chamber.

Semiconductor fabrication system embedded with effective baking module

The present disclosure describes a method includes forming a fin structure including a fin bottom portion and a stacked fin portion on a substrate. The stacked fin portion includes a first semiconductor layer and a second semiconductor layer, in which the first semiconductor layer includes germanium. The method further includes etching the fin structure to form an opening, delivering a primary etchant and a germanium-containing gas to the fin structure through the opening, and etching a portion of the second semiconductor layer in the opening with the primary etchant and the germanium-containing gas.

High selectivity etching with germanium-containing gases

A method for forming a semiconductor device structure is provided. The semiconductor device includes forming nanowire structures stacked over a substrate and spaced apart from one another, and forming a dielectric material surrounding the nanowire structures. The dielectric material has a first nitrogen concentration. The method also includes treating the dielectric material to form a treated portion. The treated portion of the dielectric material has a second nitrogen concentration that is greater than the first nitrogen concentration. The method also includes removing the treating portion of the dielectric material, thereby remaining an untreated portion of the dielectric material as inner spacer layers; and forming the gate stack surrounding nanowire structures and between the inner spacer layers.

Semiconductor device structure with inner spacer layer and method for forming the same

A method includes forming a fin structure including a plurality of first semiconductor layers and a plurality of second semiconductor layers alternately stacked over a substrate. A dummy gate structure is formed across the fin structure. The exposed second portions of the fin structure are removed. A selective etching process is performed, using a gas mixture including a hydrogen-containing gas and a fluorine-containing gas, to laterally recess the first semiconductor layers. Inner spacers are formed on opposite end surfaces of the laterally recessed first semiconductor layers. Source/drain epitaxial structures are formed on opposite end surfaces of the second semiconductor layers. The dummy gate structure is removed to expose the first portion of the fin structure. The laterally recessed first semiconductor layers are removed. A gate structure is formed to surround each of the second semiconductor layers.

Semiconductor device and manufacturing method thereof

A method of fabricating a semiconductor device includes forming a channel member suspended above a substrate, depositing a dielectric material layer wrapping around the channel member, performing an oxidation treatment to a surface portion of the dielectric material layer, selectively etching the surface portion of the dielectric material layer to expose sidewalls of the channel member, performing a nitridation treatment to remaining portions of the dielectric material layer and the exposed sidewalls of the channel member, thereby forming a nitride passivation layer partially wrapping around the channel member. The method also includes repeating the steps of performing the oxidation treatment and selectively etching until top and bottom surfaces of the channel member are exposed, removing the nitride passivation layer from the channel member, and forming a gate structure wrapping around the channel member.

Growing community of inventors

Hsinchu, Taiwan

Tze-Chung Lin