Patent US5952687A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
← Back to Patent Explorer
US5952687A Expired / Lapsed US ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Semiconductor memory device having a trench capacitor with lower electrode inside the trench

Assignee: Toshiba Corp
•
Filing: 1997-07-08
•
Granted: 1999-09-14
•
Expires: 2017-07-08
📄 Original PDF 🌐 Google Patents 🔄 Sync Now

Abstract

Abstract A semiconductor memory device having a semiconductor substrate, an insulating layer provided on the substrate, and a memory cell. The memory cell has a switching transistor provided on the substrate and a charge storage element in a trench made in the insulating layer. The charge storage element has a bottom electrode, a dielectric layer and a top electrode deposited one on another in the order mentioned.

Inventors

  • 👤 Takashi Kawakubo
  • 👤 Kazuhiro Eguchi
  • 👤 Shuichi Komatsu
  • 👤 Kazuhide Abe

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction US
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-09 02:40
CPC Classifications
H; H10; H10B; H10B12/00; H10B12/01; H10B12/02; H10B12/03; H10B12/033; H10D; H10D1/00; H10D1/60; H10D1/68; H10D1/682; H10B12/30; H10B12/31; H10D1/01; H10D1/041; H10D1/042; H10D1/692; H10D1/694; H10D1/711; H10D1/716; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S148/00; Y10S148/014

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim 112 words
A semiconductor memory device comprising: a semiconductor substrate; an insulating layer provided on the substrate and having a trench and a contact hole formed in a portion of the insulating layer at a bottom of the trench; and a memory cell having a switching transistor provided on said substrate and a charge storage element provided in the trench, said charge storage element comprising a bottom electrode formed only on an inner surface of the trench, a dielectric layer formed on the bottom electrode and a top electrode formed on the dielectric layer, said bottom electrode being connected to the switching transistor by means of a conductive layer buried in said contact hole.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 112 words
A semiconductor memory device comprising: a semiconductor substrate; an insulating layer provided on the substrate and having a trench and a contact hole formed in a portion of the insulating layer at a bottom of the trench; and a memory cell having a switching transistor provided on said substrate and a charge storage element provided in the trench, said charge storage element comprising a bottom electrode formed only on an inner surface of the trench, a dielectric layer formed on the bottom electrode and a top electrode formed on the dielectric layer, said bottom electrode being connected to the switching transistor by means of a conductive layer buried in said contact hole.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 39 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 1, wherein said bottom electrodes are made of a material selected from the group consisting of a noble metal, a noble metal oxide, a noble metal alloy, and an electrically conductive oxide.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 29 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 2, wherein said noble metal is one selected from the group consisting of platinum, gold, palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium, osmium, and rhenium.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 68 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 2, wherein said noble metal alloy is an alloy of one noble metal and a metal or a semiconductor, said noble metal being one selected from the group consisting of platinum, gold, palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium, osmium, and rhenium, and said metal or said semiconductor being one selected from the group consisting of W, Ni, Cu, Ru, Sn, Ti and Si.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 29 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 2, wherein said noble metal alloy has resistivity of at most 100 μΩcm or less and Vickers hardness of at least 80.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 49 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 2, wherein said electrically conductive oxide is one selected from the group consisting of (Ba, Sr, Ca)RuO 3 , (Ba, Sr, Ca)MoO 3 , (Sr, Ca, RE)TiO 3 , and (RE)NiO 3 wherein RE is Y or the other rare earth element.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 29 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 2, wherein said electrically conductive oxide is resistivity of at most 100 μΩcm or less and Vickers hardness of at least 80.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim 38 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 1, wherein said dielectric layer is made of a material selected from the group consisting of (Ba, Sr, Ca) (Ti, Zr, Hf, Sn)O 3 , and Pb(Zr, Ti, La)O 3 .
Claim 10
Dependent Claim 21 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 1, wherein a barrier layer is interposed between said trench and said bottom electrode.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim 33 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 9, wherein said barrier layer is made of a material selected from the group consisting of titanium, tantalum, tangsten, titanium nitride, tantalum nitride, and tangsten nitride.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim 24 words
The semiconductor memory device according to claim 1, wherein said charge storage element is partly overlapped with a word line of said switching transistor.

References Cited (Backward Citations)

US5189503A Cited
US5381365A Cited
US5432732A Cited
US5206183A Cited
US5391511A Cited
US5238862A Cited
US5572052A Cited
US5478772A Cited
JPH0730077A Cited
US5418180A Cited
US5698869A Cited

USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows

Annuity Stage Window Opens Payment Deadline Surcharge Period Until Estimated Fee Status
3.5 Years (Year 4) 2002-09-13 2003-03-15 2003-09-14 $2000.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8) 2006-09-13 2007-03-15 2007-09-14 $3760.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12) 2010-09-13 2011-03-15 2011-09-14 $7700.00 Window Closed / Lapsed

Assigned Categories & Tags

No categories assigned to this patent yet.

Assign Category Tag