Synopsys, Inc.

Vlsi Technology, Inc.

Koninklijke Philips Corporation N.v.

Nxp B.v.

Philips Electronics North America Corporation

Philips Semiconductors Inc.

Vlsi Technologies, Inc.

Xi-Wei Lin

Victor Moroz

Dipankar Pramanik

Subhas Bothra

Ian Robert Harvey

Calvin T Gabriel

Munkang Choi

Henry C Lee

Martin Harold Manley

Harlan Lee Sur, Jr

Ankush Bharati Oberai

Robert L Payne

Emmanuel De Muizon

Gwo-Chung Tai

Karim El Sayed

Jyh-Chwen Frank Lee

Kishore Singhal

Zudian Qin

Milind Ganesh Weling

Satyendra S Sethi

Tammy D Zheng

Terry Sylvan Kam-Chiu Ma

Qiang Lu

Ramiro Solis

Xiaopeng Xu

Mark Edward Rubin

Plamen A Asenov

Linda Leard

Dasarapu Vinay Kumar

Emmanual De Muizon

A method of forming a multitude of GAAFETs on a silicon substrate includes forming alternating layers of Si nanosheets and SiGe alloys above the silicon substrate, depositing a layer of oxide buffer above the top layer of SiGe alloy, depositing a mask layer above the oxide buffer layer, patterning the mask and the oxide, and performing a RIE of the silicon nanosheet and SiGe alloy layers so as to form tapered pillars of silicon nanosheet and SiGe alloy layers. In each tapered pillar, a width of the first layer of silicon nanosheet that is closer to the substrate is greater than a width of the etched second layer of silicon nanosheet that is formed above the first layer of silicon nanosheet. The first, and second tapered silicon nanosheet layers in each pillar form channels of first and second GAAFETs.

Stacked nanosheet device for process and performance optimization

A method of forming a complementary field effect transistor (CFET) is provided. The method includes adding a blocking material to a vertical channel of the CFET having an epitaxial growth, the blocking material being located below and in contact with a lower portion of the growth, adding an insulating material to an open area within the vertical channel to surround a portion of the epitaxial growth, performing an etch to (i) remove a portion of the insulating material, (ii) expose a contact surface of the epitaxial growth and (iii) provide a vertical opening within the vertical channel, the etch leaving a portion of the blocking material, and filling in the vertical opening with a conductive material, the conductive material reaching the exposed contact surface of the epitaxial growth, the blocking material remaining below the conductive material to prevent contact between the conductive material and a silicon substrate below the growth.

Self-limiting manufacturing techniques to prevent electrical shorts in a complementary field effect transistor (CFET)

Embodiments relate to an electronic circuit implemented using a first integrated circuit die, a second integrated circuit die, and an interposer connecting the first integrated circuit die to the second integrated circuit die. The first integrated circuit die implements a first electronic circuit. The first integrated circuit die includes a first set of contacts on a bottom surface, a buried power rail (BPR), and a plurality of through-silicon vias (TSV) for connecting the BPR to the first set of contacts. The interposer includes a second set of contacts and a power delivery network (PDN). Each contact of the second set of contact corresponds to a contact of the first set of contacts of the first integrated circuit die. The PDN is configured to route a power supply voltage to the second set of contacts.

Power routing for 2.5D or 3D integrated circuits including a buried power rail and interposer with power delivery network

A method of forming an electrical connection between a buried power rail (BPR) of an unfinished complementary field effect transistor (CFET) and a source or drain epitaxial growth of a lower level of the CFET is provided. The method includes performing silicon epitaxial growth in a lower level of the CFET, adding a contact material to a portion of an exposed portion of the silicon epitaxial growth in the lower level, the exposed portion of the silicon epitaxial growth being located in a vertical slot of the unfinished CFET structure, adding a conductive material within a vertical channel, the conductive material being in contact with the added contact material and the BPR to form an electrical connection between the portion of the exposed portion of the silicon epitaxial growth and the BPR and etching back a portion of the added conductive material within the vertical channel.

Forming a wrap-around contact to connect a source or drain epitaxial growth of a complimentary field effect transistor (CFET) to a buried power rail (BPR) of the CFET

At least one fin structure may be created on a silicon substrate. Next, a width of the at least one fin structure may be decreased by applying one or more iterations of a self-limiting fin etch process.

Fin patterning to reduce fin collapse and transistor leakage

A method of performing epitaxial growth of a source and drain on levels of a complementary field effect transistor (CFET) is provided. The method includes depositing a first blocking material in a vertical channel of an unfinished CFET structure, oxidizing silicon at a surface of an upper level of the CFET to provide one or more SiOprotective layers, etching away a portion of silicon from a lower level of the CFET to form a lateral recess that is exposed to the vertical channel, and performing silicon epitaxial growth in the lower level of the unfinished CFET structure. Further, after the silicon epitaxial growth on the lower level, the method includes depositing a second blocking material in the vertical channel to cover at least a portion of the silicon epitaxial growth in the lower level, removing the SiOprotective layer, and performing epitaxial growth on the upper level.

Epitaxial growth of source and drain materials in a complementary field effect transistor (CFET)

A method for forming ultra-high density integrated circuitry, such as for a 6T SRAM, for example, is provided. The method involves applying double patterning litho-etch litho-etch (LELE) and using a spacer process to shrink the critical dimension of features. To improve process margins, the method implements a double-patterning technique by modifying the layout and splitting cross-coupling straps into two colors (e.g., each color corresponds to a mask-etch process). In addition, a spacer process is implemented to shrink feature size and increase the metal-to-metal spacing between the two cross-coupling straps, in order to improve process margin and electrical performance. This is achieved by depositing a spacer layer over an opening in a hardmask, followed by spacer etch back. The opening is thus shrunk by the amount of spacer thickness. The strap-to-strap spacing may then be increased by twice the amount of spacer thickness.

Fabrication technique for forming ultra-high density integrated circuit components

Disclosed is technology for evaluating the performance, power, area, and cost of a new or significantly modified IC fabrication process. A layout of a circuit design is provided, the circuit design including pins, transistors, and interconnects. The interconnects have at least two endpoints, each of the endpoints being either a terminal of a transistor or a pin in the circuit design. The locations for a plurality of transistor and interconnect endpoints in the layout are identified. A three-dimensional circuit representation is fabricated in accordance with the layout and the fabrication process. Parasitic resistance and capacitance values are estimated for pairs of interconnect endpoints which share an interconnect in the three-dimensional circuit representation. An annotated netlist is developed for the plurality of the transistors interconnects endpoints identified from the layout, and which further indicates the parasitic resistance values and parasitic capacitance values estimated from the three-dimensional circuit representation.

Automated resistance and capacitance extraction and netlist generation of logic cells

Roughly described, a method for developing a set of design rules for a fabrication process in development includes, for each of several candidate DRUTs for the fabrication process, laying our a logic cell based on the DRUT, the logic cell having at least one transistor and at least one interconnect, simulating fabrication of the logic cell according to the fabrication process and the layout, simulating behavior of the logic cell structure, including characterizing the combined behavior of both the first transistor and the first interconnect, evaluating performance of the logic cell structure in dependence upon the behavior as characterized, and recording in a database, in association with an indication of the DRUT, values indicating performance of the logic cell. The database can be used to select the best DRUT for the fabrication process.

Pre-silicon design rule evaluation

An integrated circuit device having a plurality of lines is described in which the widths of the lines, and the spacing between adjacent lines, vary within a small range which is independent of variations due to photolithographic processes, or other patterning processes, involved in manufacturing the device. A sequential sidewall spacer formation process is described for forming an etch mask for the lines, which results in first and second sets of sidewall spacers arranged in an alternating fashion. As a result of this sequential sidewall spacer process, the variation in the widths of the lines across the plurality of lines, and the spacing between adjacent lines, depends on the variations in the dimensions of the sidewall spacers. These variations are independent of, and can be controlled over a distribution much less than, the variation in the size of the intermediate mask element caused by the patterning process.

Methods for fabricating high-density integrated circuit devices

A defective integrated circuit (IC) is analyzed to identify a portion of the integrated circuit possibly containing an electrical defect. A computer is used to process the design information of the integrated circuit and to navigate to the physical portion of the integrated circuit where the potential electrical defect might be found. The design information includes information on the layout and the technology used to fabricate the integrated circuit. A three-dimensional view of the portion of the design of the integrated circuit where the electrical defect might be found is rendered, based on the design information for the integrated circuit.

Chip cross-section identification and rendering analysis

Roughly described, the cell layout in an SRAM array is re-arranged such that the gate electrodes for transistors for which flexibility to use one channel length is desired, are formed along a different track from those for transistors for which flexibility to use a different channel length is desired. Not only does such a re-arrangement permit optimization of device ratios, but also in certain implementations can also reduce, rather than increase, cell area. Specific example layouts are described. The invention also involves layout files, macrocells, lithographic masks and integrated circuit devices incorporating these principles, as well as fabrication methods.

SRAM layouts

Roughly described, an integrated circuit transistor structure has a body of semiconductor material, the body having two longitudinally spaced doped source/drain volumes with a channel between, a gate stack disposed outside the body and facing at least one of the surfaces of the body along the channel. The body contains an adjustment volume, longitudinally within the channel volume and spaced behind the first surface by a first distance and spaced longitudinally from both the source/drain volumes. The adjustment volume comprises an adjustment volume material having, at each longitudinal position, an electrical conductivity which differs from that of the adjacent body material at the same longitudinal position, at least while the transistor is in an off-state. In one embodiment the adjustment volume material is a dielectric. In another embodiment the adjustment volume material is an electrical conductor.

Increasing Ion/Ioff ratio in FinFETs and nano-wires

A defective integrated circuit (IC) is analyzed to identify a portion of the integrated circuit possibly containing an electrical defect. A computer is used to process the design information of the integrated circuit and to navigate to the physical portion of the integrated circuit where potential electrical defect might be found. The design information includes information on the layout and the technology used to fabricate the integrated circuit. A three-dimensional view of the portion of the design of integrated circuit where the electrical defect might be found is rendered, based on the design information for the integrated circuit.

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Xi-Wei Lin