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:
Apr. 15, 2003
Filed:
Jun. 11, 1999
Shulin Wang, Campbell, CA (US);
Ming Xi, Milpitas, CA (US);
Frederick Wu, Cupertino, CA (US);
Ramanujapuram A. Srinivas, San Jose, CA (US);
Yehuda Demayo, San Jose, CA (US);
Zvi Lando, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Mei Chang, Saratoga, CA (US);
Russell C. Ellwanger, San Juan Bautista, CA (US);
Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, CA (US);
Abstract
A method of forming a titanium nitride (TiN) layer using a reaction between ammonia (NH ) and titanium tetrachloride (TiCl ). In one embodiment, an NH :TiCl ratio of about 8.5 is used to deposit a TiN layer at a temperature of about 500° C. at a pressure of about 20 torr. In another embodiment, a composite TiN layer is formed by alternately depositing TiN layers of different thicknesses, using process conditions having different NH :TiCl ratios. In one preferred embodiment, a TiN layer of less than about 20 Å is formed at an NH :TiCl ratio of about 85, followed by a deposition of a thicker TiN layer at an NH :TiCl ratio of about 8.5. By repeating the alternate film deposition using the two different process conditions, a composite TiN layer is formed. This composite TiN layer has an improved overall step coverage and reduced stress, compared to a standard TiN process, and is suitable for small geometry plug fill applications.