US6709989B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method for fabricating a semiconductor structure including a metal oxide interface with silicon
Assignee: Apple Inc
•
Filing: 2001-06-21
•
Granted: 2004-03-23
•
Expires: 2021-06-21
Abstract
Abstract A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure including the steps of: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, where providing a substrate includes providing a substrate having formed thereon a silicon oxide, and wherein forming by atomic layer deposition a seed layer further includes depositing a layer of a metal oxide onto a surface of the silicon oxide, flushing the layer of metal oxide with an inert gas, and reacting the metal oxide and the silicon oxide to form a monocrystalline silicate.
Inventors
- 👤 Jamal Ramdani
- 👤 Ravindranath Droopad
- 👤 Zhiyi Yu
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 00:57
CPC Classifications
H; H10; H10P; H10P14/00; H10P14/60; H10P14/69; H10P14/692; H10P14/6938; H10P14/65; H10P14/6502; H10P14/6506; H10P14/63; H10P14/6326; H10P14/6328; H10P14/6334; H10P14/6339; H10P14/6939; H10P14/69391; H10P14/69392
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 9
Claim 1
Independent Claim
286 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure comprising: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, the seed layer formed of a silicate material; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, wherein forming by atomic layer deposition the seed layer of a silicate material includes forming the seed layer of a silicate material selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ), wherein forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer includes forming the layer of high dielectric constant oxide selected from the group of hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ), zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ), strontium titanate (SrTiO 3 ), lanthanum oxide (La 2 O 3 ), yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 ), titanium oxide (TiO 2 ), barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO 3 ), lanthanum scandium oxide (LaScO 3 ) and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), wherein providing a substrate includes providing a substrate having formed thereon a silicon oxide, and wherein forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer further includes depositing a layer of a metal oxide onto a surface of the silicon oxide, flushing the layer of metal oxide with an inert gas, reacting the metal oxide with the silicon oxide to form the silicate selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ).
Claim 2
Independent Claim
286 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure comprising: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, the seed layer formed of a silicate material; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, wherein forming by atomic layer deposition the seed layer of a silicate material includes forming the seed layer of a silicate material selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ), wherein forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer includes forming the layer of high dielectric constant oxide selected from the group of hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ), zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ), strontium titanate (SrTiO 3 ), lanthanum oxide (La 2 O 3 ), yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 ), titanium oxide (TiO 2 ), barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO 3 ), lanthanum scandium oxide (LaScO 3 ) and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), wherein providing a substrate includes providing a substrate having formed thereon a silicon oxide, and wherein forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer further includes depositing a layer of a metal oxide onto a surface of the silicon oxide, flushing the layer of metal oxide with an inert gas, reacting the metal oxide with the silicon oxide to form the silicate selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ).
Claim 3
Independent Claim
217 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure comprising: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, the seed layer formed of a silicate material; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, wherein forming by atomic layer deposition the seed layer of a silicate material includes forming the seed layer of a silicate material selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ), wherein forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer includes forming the layer of high dielectric constant oxide selected from the group of hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ), zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ), strontium titanate (SrTiO 3 ), lanthanum oxide (La 2 O 3 ), yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 ), titanium oxide (TiO 2 ), barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO 3 ), lanthanum scandium oxide (LaScO 3 ) and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), wherein providing a substrate includes providing a substrate having a layer of hydrogen formed thereon by hydrogen passivation.
Claim 4
Independent Claim
217 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure comprising: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, the seed layer formed of a silicate material; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, wherein forming by atomic layer deposition the seed layer of a silicate material includes forming the seed layer of a silicate material selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ), wherein forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer includes forming the layer of high dielectric constant oxide selected from the group of hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ), zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ), strontium titanate (SrTiO 3 ), lanthanum oxide (La 2 O 3 ), yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 ), titanium oxide (TiO 2 ), barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO 3 ), lanthanum scandium oxide (LaScO 3 ) and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), wherein providing a substrate includes providing a substrate having a layer of hydrogen formed thereon by hydrogen passivation.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
137 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure as claimed in claim 2 wherein forming by atomic layer deposition a seed layer further includes desorbing the layer of hydrogen formed on the substrate, exposing the silicon substrate to a silicon precursor and at least one metal precursor forming a layer of a silicon and a metal on the surface of the silicon substrate, flushing the layer of silicon with an inert gas to remove any excess silicon and metal precursor material, exposing the surface of the layer of silicon to at least one of oxygen (O 2 ) with or without plasma, water (H 2 O), nitrous oxide (N 2 O), or nitric oxide (NO) to oxidize the layer of silicon and metal thereby forming a single oxidized monolayer, and flushing the oxidized monolayer with an inert gas.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
23 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure as claimed in claim 3 further including repeating the atomic layer deposition to form oxidized monolayers.
Claim 7
Independent Claim
294 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure comprising: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, the seed layer formed of a silicate material; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, wherein forming by atomic layer deposition the seed layer of a silicate material includes forming the seed layer of a silicate material selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ), wherein forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer includes forming the layer of high dielectric constant oxide selected from the group of hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ), zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ), strontium titanate (SrTiO 3 ), lanthanum oxide (La 2 O 3 ), yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 ), titanium oxide (TiO 2 ), barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO 3 ), lanthanum scandium oxide (LaScO 3 ) and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), whereby the forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide includes exposing the monocrystalline seed layer to a metal precursor, thereby forming a layer of metal, flushing the layer of metal with an inert gas, exposing the layer of metal to at least one of oxygen (O) with or without plasma, water (H 2 O), nitrous oxide (N 2 O), or nitric oxide (NO) to oxidize the layer of metal thereby forming a single monocrystalline high-k oxidized monolayer, and flushing the oxidized monolayer with an inert gas.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
294 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure comprising: providing a silicon substrate having a surface; forming by atomic layer deposition a monocrystalline seed layer on the surface of the silicon substrate, the seed layer formed of a silicate material; and forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer, wherein forming by atomic layer deposition the seed layer of a silicate material includes forming the seed layer of a silicate material selected from the group of strontium silicon oxide (SrSiO 4 ), zirconium silicon oxide (ZrSiO 4 ), and hafnium silicon oxide (HfSiO 4 ), wherein forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide on the seed layer includes forming the layer of high dielectric constant oxide selected from the group of hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ), zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ), strontium titanate (SrTiO 3 ), lanthanum oxide (La 2 O 3 ), yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 ), titanium oxide (TiO 2 ), barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), lanthanum aluminate (LaAlO 3 ), lanthanum scandium oxide (LaScO 3 ) and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), whereby the forming by atomic layer deposition one or more layers of a monocrystalline high dielectric constant oxide includes exposing the monocrystalline seed layer to a metal precursor, thereby forming a layer of metal, flushing the layer of metal with an inert gas, exposing the layer of metal to at least one of oxygen (O) with or without plasma, water (H 2 O), nitrous oxide (N 2 O), or nitric oxide (NO) to oxidize the layer of metal thereby forming a single monocrystalline high-k oxidized monolayer, and flushing the oxidized monolayer with an inert gas.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
28 words
A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure as claimed in claim 5 further including repeating the atomic layer deposition to form monocrystalline high-k oxide of a desired thickness.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
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| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2007-03-23 | 2007-09-22 | 2008-03-23 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2011-03-23 | 2011-09-22 | 2012-03-23 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2015-03-23 | 2015-09-22 | 2016-03-23 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |