Application of electronic properties of germanium to inhibit n-type or p-type diffusion in silicon

Claim 1

A semiconductor structure for controlling lateral diffusion of electrically-active dopant atoms in a crystalline silicon lattice, the structure comprising: (a) first and second vertically spaced-apart germanium-rich regions of the silicon lattice having germanium atoms at substitutional sites in the silicon lattice, the first and second germanium-rich regions being substantially vertically aligned in the silicon lattice; and (b) third and fourth vertically spaced-apart germanium-rich regions of the silicon lattice having germanium atoms at substitutional sites in the silicon lattice, the third and fourth germanium-rich regions being substantially vertically aligned in the silicon lattice, wherein the first and second germanium-rich regions are laterally spaced-apart from the third and fourth germanium-rich regions by a region of the silicon lattice into which P-type dopant atoms are to be introduced.