Abstract Silicon dioxide insulating films for integrated circuits are provided with enhanced electronic properties, including enhanced dielectric breakdown of MOS insulating layers and reduced trapping of holes by exposing a metal oxide semiconductor wafer including an exposed silicon dioxide layer, in an ambient of flowing oxygen gas, to heating radiation from a halogen lamp for a duration on the order of 100 seconds to achieve annealing temperature on the order of 1000° C. For reduced hole trapping, the ambient gas is oxygen and the annealing temperature is on the order of 1000° C. for a duration on the order of 100 seconds, depending on the oxide thickness. Nitrogen, occurring at the silicon-silicon dioxide interface as a result of previous processing including a long anneal in nitrogen, increases the improvement of the silicon dioxide by the subsequent rapid thermal annealing in oxygen.
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer characterized by (a) positioning the wafer inside an enclosure; (b) charging said enclosure with flowing oxygen; and (c) quickly heating the wafer by radiation heating to a temperature of approximately 1000 C. for 10-300 seconds.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
53 words
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer characterized by (a) positioning the wafer inside an enclosure; (b) charging said enclosure with flowing oxygen; and (c) quickly heating the wafer by radiation heating to a temperature of approximately 1000 C. for 10-300 seconds.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
57 words
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer characterized by (a) positioning the wafer inside an enclosure; (b) charging said enclosure with flowing oxygen; and (c) quickly heating the wafer by radiation heating to a temperature of approximately 1000 C for a duration of approximately 100 seconds.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
57 words
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer characterized by (a) positioning the wafer inside an enclosure; (b) charging said enclosure with flowing oxygen; and (c) quickly heating the wafer by radiation heating to a temperature of approximately 1000 C for a duration of approximately 100 seconds.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
45 words
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer according to claim 2 further characterized by (d) previously treating the wafer in a nitrogen atmosphere so as to provide nitrogen atoms at the silicon-silicon dioxide interface.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
41 words
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer according to claim 3 further characterized in that said nitrogen atmosphere pretreatment (d) is a post-oxidation anneal of multiple hours at annealing temperatures.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
41 words
A process for enhancing electronic properties in a thin silicon dioxide insulating layer on an integrated circuit wafer according to claim 3 further characterized in that said nitrogen atmosphere pretreatment (d) is a post-oxidation anneal of seventeen hours at 1000 C.