← Back to Patent Explorer
US5576928A Expired / Lapsed US ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

High-dielectric-constant material electrodes comprising thin platinum layers

Assignee: Entegris Inc
•
Filing: 1995-06-07
•
Granted: 1996-11-19
•
Expires: 2015-06-07
📄 Original PDF 🌐 Google Patents 🔄 Sync Now

Abstract

Abstract A preferred embodiment of this invention comprises a thin unreactive film (e.g. platinum 36) contacting a high-dielectric-constant material (e.g. barium strontium titanate 38) to an electrode. The thin unreactive film provides a stable conductive interface between the high-dielectric-constant material layer and the electrode base (e.g. palladium 34). As opposed to a standard thin-film layer, the thin unreactive film is generally less than 50 nm thick, preferably less than 35 nm thick, more preferably between 5 nm and 25 nm thick, and most preferably between 10 nm and 20 nm thick. A thin unreactive film can benefit from the advantages of the materials used while avoiding or minimizing many of their disadvantages. A thin unreactive film would generally be substantially less expensive than a standard thin-film layer since much less material can be used while not significantly affecting the surface area of the electrode in contact with the HDC material. These structures may also be used for multilayer capacitors and other thin-film ferroelectric devices such as pyroelectric materials, non-volatile memories, thin-film piezoelectric and thin-film electro-optic oxides.

Inventors

  • 👤 Scott R. Summerfelt
  • 👤 Howard R. Beratan
  • 👤 Peter S. Kirlin
  • 👤 Bruce E. Gnade

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction US
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-10-29 21:20
CPC Classifications
H; H10; H10D; H10D1/00; H10D1/60; H10D1/68; H10D1/682; H10D1/692; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T29/00; Y10T29/43; Y10T29/435

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 22
Claim 1
Independent Claim 84 words
A microelectronic capacitor comprising: (a) a high-dielectric-constant material pillar, said pillar comprising an outer vertical surface and an open-ended cavity with an inner vertical surface; (b) an inner thin ruthenium dioxide film disposed on said inner vertical surface and an outer thin ruthenium dioxide film disposed on said outer vertical surface; and (c) an inner non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode disposed on said inner thin ruthenium dioxide film and an outer non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode disposed on said outer thin ruthenium dioxide film.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 84 words
A microelectronic capacitor comprising: (a) a high-dielectric-constant material pillar, said pillar comprising an outer vertical surface and an open-ended cavity with an inner vertical surface; (b) an inner thin ruthenium dioxide film disposed on said inner vertical surface and an outer thin ruthenium dioxide film disposed on said outer vertical surface; and (c) an inner non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode disposed on said inner thin ruthenium dioxide film and an outer non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode disposed on said outer thin ruthenium dioxide film.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 21 words
The structure of claim 1, wherein said inner and outer electrodes comprise a high melting point noble or platinum group metal.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 15 words
The structure of claim 1, wherein said inner and outer electrodes comprise a conductive nitride.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 14 words
The structure of claim 1, wherein said lower electrode base comprises a conductive oxide.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 50 words
The structure of claim 1, wherein said high-dielectric-constant material pillar is selected from the group consisting of: barium strontium titanate, lead zirconate titanate, lead lanthanum titanate, lead lanthanum zirconate titanate, bismuth titanate, potassium tantalate, lead scandium tantalate, lead niobate, lead zinc niobate, potassium niobate, lead magnesium niobate, and combinations thereof.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 20 words
The structure of claim 1, wherein said inner and outer thin ruthenium dioxide films are less than 35 nm thick.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 13 words
The structure of claim 2, wherein said inner and outer electrodes comprise palladium.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim 27 words
The structure of claim 3, wherein said conductive nitride is selected from the group consisting of: titanium nitride, tantalum nitride, zirconium nitride, hafnium nitride, and combinations thereof.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim 29 words
The structure of claim 4, wherein said conductive oxide is selected from the group consisting of: tin oxide, osmium oxide, rhodium oxide, iridium oxide, indium oxide, and combinations thereof.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim 22 words
The structure of claim 4, wherein said inner and outer thin ruthenium dioxide films are between 5 nm and 25 nm thick.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim 22 words
The structure of claim 9, wherein said inner and outer thin ruthenium dioxide films are between 10 nm and 20 nm thick.
Claim 13
Independent Claim 89 words
A method of forming a microelectronic capacitor, said method comprising: (a) forming a high-dielectric-constant material pillar, said pillar comprising an outer vertical surface and an open-ended cavity with an inner vertical surface; (b) forming an inner thin ruthenium dioxide film on said inner vertical surface and an outer thin ruthenium dioxide film on said outer vertical surface; and (c) forming an inner non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode on said inner thin ruthenium dioxide film and an outer non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode on said outer thin ruthenium dioxide film.
Claim 14
Independent Claim 89 words
A method of forming a microelectronic capacitor, said method comprising: (a) forming a high-dielectric-constant material pillar, said pillar comprising an outer vertical surface and an open-ended cavity with an inner vertical surface; (b) forming an inner thin ruthenium dioxide film on said inner vertical surface and an outer thin ruthenium dioxide film on said outer vertical surface; and (c) forming an inner non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode on said inner thin ruthenium dioxide film and an outer non-Ru, non-RuO 2 conductive electrode on said outer thin ruthenium dioxide film.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim 79 words
The method according to claim 12, said step (a) further comprising: (a1) forming a pillar mask having a sidewall and a top surface, on a capacitor plug in an insulating layer; (a2) conformally depositing a high-dielectric-constant material layer on said insulating layer, and on said sidewall and top surface of said pillar mask; (a3) anisotropically removing said high-dielectric-constant material layer from said insulating layer and from said top surface of said pillar mask; and (a4) removing said pillar mask.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim 21 words
The structure of claim 12, wherein said inner and outer electrodes comprise a high melting point noble or platinum group metal.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim 15 words
The structure of claim 12, wherein said inner and outer electrodes comprise a conductive nitride.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim 14 words
The structure of claim 12, wherein said lower electrode base comprises a conductive oxide.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim 51 words
The method according to claim 12, wherein said high-dielectric-constant material pillar is selected from the group consisting of: barium strontium titanate, lead zirconate titanate, lead lanthanum titanate, lead lanthanum zirconate titanate, bismuth titanate, potassium tantalate, lead scandium tantalate, lead niobate, lead zinc niobate, potassium niobate, lead magnesium niobate, and combinations thereof.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim 21 words
The method according to claim 12, wherein said inner and outer thin ruthenium dioxide films are less than 35 nm thick.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim 23 words
The method according to claim 18, wherein said inner and outer thin ruthenium dioxide films are between 5 nm and 25 nm thick.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim 23 words
The method according to claim 19, wherein said inner and outer thin ruthenium dioxide films are between 10 nm and 20 nm thick.

USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows

Annuity Stage Window Opens Payment Deadline Surcharge Period Until Estimated Fee Status
3.5 Years (Year 4) 1999-11-19 2000-05-20 2000-11-19 $2000.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8) 2003-11-19 2004-05-20 2004-11-19 $3760.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12) 2007-11-19 2008-05-20 2008-11-19 $7700.00 Window Closed / Lapsed

Assigned Categories & Tags

No categories assigned to this patent yet.

Assign Category Tag