US6351036B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Electronic devices with a barrier film and process for making same
Assignee: United States Department of the Navy
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Filing: 1998-08-20
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Granted: 2002-02-26
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Expires: 2018-08-20
Abstract
Abstract A semiconductor device having a barrier film comprising an extremely thin film formed of one or more monolayers each comprised of a two-dimensional array of metal atoms. In one exemplary aspect, the barrier film is used for preventing the diffusion of atoms of another material, such as a copper conductor, into a substrate, such as a semiconducting material or an insulating material. In one mode of making the semiconductor device, the barrier film is formed by depositing a precursor, such as a metal halide (e.g., BaF 2 ), onto the substrate material, and then annealing the resulting film on the substrate material to remove all of the constituents of the temporary heteroepitaxial film except for a monolayer of metal atoms left behind as attached to the surface of the substrate. A conductor, such as copper, deposited onto the barrier film is effectively prevented from diffusing into the substrate material even when the barrier film is only one or several monolayers in thickness. The extremely thin barrier film makes possible a significant increase in the component density and a corresponding reduction in the number of layers in large scale integrated circuits, as well as improved performance.
Inventors
- 👤 Michael F. Stumborg
- 👤 Francisco Santiago
- 👤 Tak Kin Chu
- 👤 Kevin A. Boulais
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 01:30
CPC Classifications
C; C23; C23C; C23C14/00; C23C14/58; C23C14/5806; C23C14/02; C23C14/024; C23C14/025; C23C14/06; C23C14/14; C23C14/18; C23C16/00; C23C16/02; C23C16/0272; C23C16/0281; C23C16/06; C23C16/08; C23C16/14; H; H10; H10W; H10W20/00; H10W20/01; H10W20/031; H10W20/032; H10W20/033; H10W20/035
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 34
Claim 1
Independent Claim
62 words
A semiconductor device comprising: a substrate; a substantially continuous barrier film on said substrate, said barrier film comprising a monolayer, wherein said monolayer is comprised of metal atoms only, and wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 20 Å; and a metallic material, comprising a different type of metal from said metal atom, on said barrier film.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
62 words
A semiconductor device comprising: a substrate; a substantially continuous barrier film on said substrate, said barrier film comprising a monolayer, wherein said monolayer is comprised of metal atoms only, and wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 20 Å; and a metallic material, comprising a different type of metal from said metal atom, on said barrier film.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
17 words
The semiconductor device according to claim 1 , wherein said metal atoms are all the same element.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
24 words
The semiconductor device according to claim 1 , wherein said barrier film has a thickness of between approximately 5 Å to approximately 20 Å.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
33 words
The semiconductor device according to claim 1 , wherein said barrier film comprises a plurality of contiguous monolayers, where each of said monolayers is formed of metal atoms only, located on said substrate.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
99 words
A semiconductor device comprising: a substrate material having a surface; a substantially continuous barrier film on said substrate surface, said barrier film having a layer comprising elemental metal atoms only, wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 20 Å; and a conductor on said barrier film, said conductor comprising a different type of metal from said elemental metal atoms and having a tendency to diffuse into said substrate material if in direct contact therewith, wherein said layer comprising elemental metal atoms serves as a barrier, inhibiting diffusion of the conductor into the substrate material.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
99 words
A semiconductor device comprising: a substrate material having a surface; a substantially continuous barrier film on said substrate surface, said barrier film having a layer comprising elemental metal atoms only, wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 20 Å; and a conductor on said barrier film, said conductor comprising a different type of metal from said elemental metal atoms and having a tendency to diffuse into said substrate material if in direct contact therewith, wherein said layer comprising elemental metal atoms serves as a barrier, inhibiting diffusion of the conductor into the substrate material.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
22 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 5 Å.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
24 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , wherein said barrier film is a single monolayer attached to said surface of said substrate material.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
16 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , in which said substrate material is a semiconductor.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
17 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , in which said substrate material is a silicon semiconductor.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
17 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , in which said substrate material is an insulating material.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
16 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , in which said substrate material is silicon oxide.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
15 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , in which the conductor comprises a metal.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
14 words
A semiconductor device according to claim 5 , in which the conductor comprises copper.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
46 words
The semiconductor device according to claim 5 , wherein said barrier film comprises a plurality of contiguous layers, where each of said layers is formed of metal atoms only and said metal atoms all being of the same type, located on said surface of said substrate.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
64 words
A process for making a semiconductor device comprising the steps of: forming, on a surface of a substrate material, a substantially continuous barrier film having a monolayer formed only of metal atoms, wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 20 Å; and depositing a metallic material, comprising a different type of metal from said metal atoms, on said monolayer.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
64 words
A process for making a semiconductor device comprising the steps of: forming, on a surface of a substrate material, a substantially continuous barrier film having a monolayer formed only of metal atoms, wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 20 Å; and depositing a metallic material, comprising a different type of metal from said metal atoms, on said monolayer.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
117 words
A process for making a semiconductor device comprising the steps of: forming, on a surface of a substrate material, a barrier film comprising a plurality of monolayers each comprised of metal atoms, wherein said forming of said barrier film including: depositing on said substrate a monolaver precursor compound comprising a metal halide, removing the monolayer precursor compound except for a layer of said metal atoms retained as a first monolayer on said substrate; and depositing at least one additional monolayer of metal atoms on said first monolayer; and depositing a conductor, having a tendency to diffuse into the substrate material, onto said barrier film, wherein said barrier film inhibits diffusion of the conductor into the substrate material.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
117 words
A process for making a semiconductor device comprising the steps of: forming, on a surface of a substrate material, a barrier film comprising a plurality of monolayers each comprised of metal atoms, wherein said forming of said barrier film including: depositing on said substrate a monolaver precursor compound comprising a metal halide, removing the monolayer precursor compound except for a layer of said metal atoms retained as a first monolayer on said substrate; and depositing at least one additional monolayer of metal atoms on said first monolayer; and depositing a conductor, having a tendency to diffuse into the substrate material, onto said barrier film, wherein said barrier film inhibits diffusion of the conductor into the substrate material.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
21 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein said barrier film has a thickness of not more than approximately 5 Å.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
28 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein said step of forming said barrier film comprises forming a single monolayer attached to said surface of said substrate material.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
28 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein said step of forming said barrier film comprises sequentially forming said plurality of monolayers to be contiguous with each other.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
40 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein the step of forming said barrier film comprises depositing the monolayer precursor compound on said substrate by molecular beam epitaxy, and then annealing said monolayer precursor compound to form said first monolayer.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
38 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein the step of forming said barrier film comprises depositing the monolayer precursor compound on said substrate by sputtering, and then annealing said monolayer precursor compound to form said first monolayer.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
40 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein the step of forming said barrier film comprises depositing the monolayer precursor compound on said substrate by physical vapor deposition, and then annealing said monolayer precursor compound to form said first monolayer.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
54 words
A process according to claim 16 , wherein the step of forming said barrier film comprises depositing the monolayer precursor compound on said substrate by a deposition process selected from the group consisting of molecular beam epitaxy and physical vapor deposition, and then chemical etching said monolayer precursor compound to form said first monolayer.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
16 words
A process according to claim 16 , in which the substrate material is a semiconductor material.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
15 words
A process according to claim 16 , in which the substrate material is silicon semiconductor.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
16 words
A process according to claim 16 , in which the substrate material is an insulating material.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
16 words
A process according to claim 16 , in which the substrate material is a silicon oxide.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
15 words
A process according to claim 16 , in which the conductor is a metallic conductor.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
13 words
A process according to claim 16 , in which the conductor comprises copper.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
23 words
The process according to claim 16 , wherein said barrier film has a thickness of between approximately 5 Å to approximately 20 Å.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2005-02-25 | 2005-08-27 | 2006-02-26 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2009-02-25 | 2009-08-27 | 2010-02-26 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2013-02-25 | 2013-08-27 | 2014-02-26 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |