The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 10, 2024
Filed:
Mar. 26, 2020
Lam Research Corporation, Fremont, CA (US);
Bart J. van Schravendijk, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Soumana Hamma, Tigard, OR (US);
Kai-Lin Ou, Tualatin, OR (US);
Ming Li, West Linn, OR (US);
Malay Milan Samantaray, Beaverton, OR (US);
Lam Research Corporation, Fremont, CA (US);
Abstract
Disclosed are methods for the formation of silicon nitride (SiN) on only the horizontal surfaces of structures such as 3D NAND staircase. This allows for thicker landing pads for subsequently formed vias. In some embodiments, the methods involve deposition of a SiN layer over a staircase followed by a treatment to selectively densify the SiN layer on the horizontal surfaces with respect to the sidewall surfaces. A wet etch is then performed to remove SiN from the sidewall surfaces. The selective treatment results in significantly different wet etch rates (WERs) between the horizontal surfaces and the sidewalls.