Patents Examined by Leonard Chang
  • Patent number: 8405128
    Abstract: A method for enhancing growth of device-quality planar semipolar nitride semiconductor thin films via metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) by using an (Al, In, Ga)N nucleation layer containing at least some indium. Specifically, the method comprises loading a substrate into a reactor, heating the substrate under a flow of nitrogen and/or hydrogen and/or ammonia, depositing an InxGa1-xN nucleation layer on the heated substrate, depositing a semipolar nitride semiconductor thin film on the InxGa1-xN nucleation layer, and cooling the substrate under a nitrogen overpressure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: The Regents of the University of California
    Inventors: Hitoshi Sato, John F. Kaeding, Michael Iza, Benjamin A. Haskell, Troy J. Baker, Steven P. DenBaars, Shuji Nakamura
  • Patent number: 8404596
    Abstract: A plasma ashing method is used for removing a patterned resist film in a processing chamber after etching a portion of a low-k film from an object to be processed in the processing chamber by using the patterned resist film as a mask. The method includes a first step of supplying a reaction product removal gas including at least CO2 gas into the processing chamber, generating plasma of the reaction product removal gas by applying a high frequency power for the plasma generation, and removing reaction products deposited on an inner wall of the processing chamber; and a second step of supplying an ashing gas into the processing chamber, generating plasma of the ashing gas by applying a high frequency power for the plasma generation, and removing the resist film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Shigeru Tahara, Naotsugu Hoshi
  • Patent number: 8404583
    Abstract: A method for improving conformality of oxide layers along sidewalls of vias in semiconductor substrates includes forming a nitride layer over an upper surface of a semiconductor substrate and forming a via extending through the nitride layer and into the semiconductor substrate. The via may have a depth of at least about 50 ?m from a top surface of the nitride layer and an opening of less than about 10 ?m at the top surface of the nitride layer. The method also includes forming an oxide layer over the nitride layer and along sidewalls and bottom of the via. The oxide layer may be formed using a thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process at a temperature of less than about 450° C., where a thickness of the oxide layer at the bottom of the via is at least about 50% of a thickness of the oxide layer at the top surface of the nitride layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2013
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Zhong Qiang Hua, Manuel A. Hernandez, Lei Luo, Kedar Sapre
  • Patent number: 8394694
    Abstract: A method for improving the reliability of a high-k gate dielectric layer comprises incorporating a noble metal into a transistor gate stack that contains the high-k gate dielectric layer and annealing the transistor gate stack in a molecular hydrogen or deuterium containing atmosphere. The annealing process drives at least a portion of the molecular hydrogen or deuterium toward the high-k gate dielectric layer. When the molecular hydrogen or deuterium contacts the noble metal, it is converted into atomic hydrogen or deuterium that is able to treat the high-k gate dielectric layer and improve its reliability.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2013
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Adrien R. Lavoie, Aaron A. Budrevich, Ashutosh Ashutosh, Huicheng Chang
  • Patent number: 8389310
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing an oxide thin film transistor includes the steps of forming an oxide semiconductor active layer by a deposition process. In the deposition process, a total flow rate of a gas is more than 100 standard cubic centimeters per minute and an electric power is in a range from 1.5 kilowatts to 10 kilowatts. The oxide thin film transistor manufactured by the above methods has advantages of low leakage currents, high electron mobility, and excellent temperature stability. The present invention also provides a method for manufacturing a display device. The display quality of the display device can be improved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2013
    Assignee: E Ink Holdings Inc.
    Inventors: Ted-Hong Shinn, Henry Wang, Fang-An Shu, Yao-Chou Tsai
  • Patent number: 8390106
    Abstract: A circuit board includes an insulating member and a semiconductor chip encapsulated with the thermoplastic resin portion of the insulating member. A wiring member is located in the insulating member and electrically connected to first and second electrodes on respective sides of the semiconductor chip. The wiring member includes a pad, an interlayer connection member, and a connection portion. A diffusion layer is located between the first electrode and the connection portion, between the pad and the connection portion, and between the second electrode and the interlayer connection member. At least one element of the interlayer connection member has a melting point lower than a glass-transition point of the thermoplastic resin portion. The connection portion is made of material having a melting point higher than a melting point of the thermoplastic resin portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2013
    Assignee: Denso Corporation
    Inventors: Yukihiro Maeda, Kouji Kondoh, Yoshiharu Harada, Takeshi Yamauchi, Tetsuo Fujii
  • Patent number: 8383491
    Abstract: A step of forming an insulating film over a semiconductor substrate and forming an embrittled region in the semiconductor substrate by irradiating the semiconductor substrate with accelerated ions through the insulating film; a step of disposing a surface of the semiconductor substrate and a surface of a base substrate opposite to each other and bonding the surface of the insulating film to the surface of the base substrate; a step of forming a semiconductor layer over the base substrate with the insulating film interposed therebetween by causing separation along the embrittled region by performing heat treatment after the surface of the insulating film and the surface of the base substrate are bonded to each other; a step of performing etching treatment on the semiconductor layer; a step of irradiating the semiconductor layer subjected to the etching treatment with a laser beam; and a step of irradiating the semiconductor layer irradiated with the laser beam with plasma.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2013
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Motomu Kurata, Shinya Sasagawa, Taiga Muraoka
  • Patent number: 8383435
    Abstract: A photonic semiconductor device and method are provided that ensure that the surface of the device upon completion of the SAG process is planar, or at least substantially planar, such that performance of the subsequent processes is facilitated, thereby enabling higher manufacturing yield to be achieved. A photonic semiconductor device and method are also provided that ensure that the isolation region of the device will have high resistance and low capacitance, without requiring the placement of a thick dielectric material beneath each of the contact pads. Eliminating the need to place thick dielectric materials underneath the contact pads eliminates the risk that the contact pads will peel away from the assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2013
    Assignee: Avago Technologies Fiber IP (Singapore) Pte. Ltd
    Inventors: Marzia Rosso, Alessandro Stano, Ruiyu Fang, Paolo Valenti, Pietro Della Casa, Simone Codato, Cesare Rigo, Claudio Coriasso
  • Patent number: 8378421
    Abstract: A thin film transistor substrate. The thin film transistor substrate includes a substrate, an adhesive layer on the substrate, and a semiconductor layer having a first doped region, a second doped region and a channel region on the adhesive layer. The thin film transistor substrate further includes a first dielectric layer on the semiconductor layer, a gate electrode overlapping the channel region, a second dielectric layer on the first dielectric layer and the gate electrode, a source electrode disposed on the second insulating layer, and a drain electrode spaced apart from the source electrode on the source electrode. The channel region is disposed between the first doped region and the second doped region, and has a transmittance higher than those of the first doped region and the second doped region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2013
    Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
    Inventors: Jae Bon Koo, In-Kyu You, Seongdeok Ahn, Kyoung Ik Cho
  • Patent number: 8372667
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention pertain to substrate processing equipment and methods incorporating light sources which provide independent control of light pulse duration, shape and repetition rate. Embodiments further provide rapid increases and decreases in intensity of illumination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventor: Stephen Moffatt
  • Patent number: 8368179
    Abstract: A method for improved growth of a semipolar (Al,In,Ga,B)N semiconductor thin film using an intentionally miscut substrate. Specifically, the method comprises intentionally miscutting a substrate, loading a substrate into a reactor, heating the substrate under a flow of nitrogen and/or hydrogen and/or ammonia, depositing an InxGa1-xN nucleation layer on the heated substrate, depositing a semipolar nitride semiconductor thin film on the InxGa1-xN nucleation layer, and cooling the substrate under a nitrogen overpressure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Assignees: The Regents of the University of California, Japan Science and Technology Agency
    Inventors: John F. Kaeding, Dong-Seon Lee, Michael Iza, Troy J. Baker, Hitoshi Sato, Benjamin A. Haskell, James S. Speck, Steven P. DenBaars, Shuji Nakamura
  • Patent number: 8367549
    Abstract: Provided is a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device. In the method, after a thin liner is formed on a substrate on which a lower interconnection is formed, a silicon source is supplied to form a silicide layer under the liner by a reaction between the silicon source and the lower interconnection, and the silicide layer is nitrided and an etch stop layer is formed. Therefore, the lower interconnection is prevented from making contact with the silicon source, variations of the surface resistance of the lower interconnection can be prevented, and thus high-speed devices can be fabricated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2013
    Assignee: Wonik IPS Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Young Soo Kwon
  • Patent number: 8361893
    Abstract: An undoped semiconductor substrate is doped by applying stress at a side of the undoped semiconductor substrate to release self interstitials in the substrate and implanting chalcogen atoms into the side of the substrate. The substrate is annealed to form a first semiconductor region containing the chalcogen atoms and a second semiconductor region devoid of the chalcogen atoms. The first semiconductor region has a doping concentration higher than the doping concentration of the second semiconductor region. The indiffusion of chalcogen atoms into a semiconductor material in the presence of self interstitials can also be used to form field stop regions in power semiconductor devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2013
    Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
    Inventors: Gerhard Schmidt, Hans-Joachim Schulze, Bernd Kolbesen
  • Patent number: 8354330
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of fabricating an SOI SJ LDMOS structure that can completely eliminate the substrate-assisted depletion effects, comprising the following steps: step one: a conducting layer is prepared below the SOI BOX layer using the bonding technique; the conducting layer is prepared in the following way: depositing a barrier layer on a first bulk silicon wafer, and then depositing a charge conducting layer, thereby obtaining a first intermediate structure; forming a silicon dioxide layer on a second bulk silicon wafer via thermal oxidation, then depositing a barrier layer, and finally depositing a charge conducting layer, thereby obtaining a second intermediate structure; bonding the first intermediate structure and the second intermediate structure using the metal bonding technology to arrange the conducting layer below the SOI BOX layer; step two: a SJ LDMOS structure is fabricated on the SOI substrate having a conducting layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2013
    Assignee: Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
    Inventors: Xinhong Cheng, Dawei He, Zhongjian Wang, Dawei Xu, Chao Xia, Zhaorui Song, Yuehui Yu
  • Patent number: 8349660
    Abstract: A process for closure of at least one cavity intended to encapsulate or be part of a microelectronic device, comprising the following steps: a) Producing a cavity in a first substrate comprising a first layer traversed by an opening forming an access to the cavity; b) Producing a portion of bond material around the opening, on a surface of the first layer located on the side opposite the cavity; c) Producing, on a second substrate, a portion of fusible material, with a deposition of the fusible material on the second substrate and the use of a mask; d) Placing the portion of fusible material in contact with the portion of bond material; e) Forming a plug for the opening, which adheres to the portion of bond material, by melting and then solidification of the fusible material; f) Separating the plug and the second substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique
    Inventors: Gilles Delapierre, Bernard Diem, Francois Perruchot
  • Patent number: 8349712
    Abstract: The invention inter alia relates to a method of fabricating a layer assembly comprising the steps of: arranging a first layer on top of a carrier; arranging a second layer on top of the first layer; locally modifying the material of the buried first layer and providing at least one modified section in the first layer, wherein the modified material changes or induces mechanical strain in a portion of the second layer which is arranged above the at least one modified section; after locally modifying the material of the buried first layer, depositing a third material on top of the second layer, at least one characteristic of the third material being sensitive to the local mechanical strain in the second layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2013
    Assignee: Technische Universitat Berlin
    Inventors: André Strittmatter, Andrei Schliwa, Tim David Germann, Udo W. Pohl, Vladimir Gaysler, Jan-Hindrik Schulze
  • Patent number: 8338270
    Abstract: First etching is performed on a surface of a single crystal semiconductor layer formed with no substrate bias applied. The single crystal semiconductor layer is formed by attaching a single crystal semiconductor substrate including an embrittled region to a supporting substrate so that an oxide layer is sandwiched between the single crystal semiconductor substrate and the supporting substrate and separating the single crystal semiconductor substrate into the single crystal semiconductor layer and part of the single crystal semiconductor substrate at the embrittled region. After the first etching, the single crystal semiconductor layer is irradiated with a laser beam and at least part of the surface of the single crystal semiconductor layer is melted and solidified. Then, second etching is performed on the surface of the single crystal semiconductor layer with no substrate bias applied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Kosei Noda
  • Patent number: 8338276
    Abstract: The present invention relates to methods of manufacturing a structure having semi-conductor material nanocrystals on a dielectric material substrate by chemical vapour deposition (CVD), the method including at least: i) contacting a surface of a dielectric layer present on a substrate with a first gaseous precursor, by CVD, to form nanocrystal nuclei on the surface of a the dielectric layer; ii) contacting the nanocrystal nuclei with a second gaseous precursor, by CVD, to selectively deposit nanocrystal semi-conductor material only on the nuclei and to grow nanocrystals on the nuclei, each nanocrystal having an exposed surface; and iii) forming a nitride layer only on the exposed surface of each nanocrystal by contacting the nanocrystals with a mixture including at least the second gaseous precursor and a third gaseous precursor to terminate the growth of said nanocrystals and to selectively and stoichiometrically deposit the nitride layer on the exposed surface, wherein a material of said nanocrystal nuclei
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2012
    Assignee: Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique
    Inventor: Jean-Philippe Colonna
  • Patent number: 8329512
    Abstract: A method of making a device includes forming a first photoresist layer over a sacrificial layer, patterning the first photoresist layer to form first photoresist features, rendering the first photoresist features insoluble to a solvent, forming a second photoresist layer over the first photoresist features, patterning the second photoresist layer to form second photoresist features, forming a spacer layer over the first and second photoresist features, etching the spacer layer to form spacer features and to expose the first and second photoresist features, forming third photoresist features between the spacer features, removing the spacer features, and patterning the sacrificial layer using the first, second and third photoresist features as a mask to form sacrificial features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2012
    Assignee: SanDisk 3D LLC
    Inventors: Natalie Nguyen, Paul Wai Kie Poon, Steven J. Radigan, Michael Konevecki, Yung-Tin Chen, Raghuveer Makala, Vance Dunton
  • Patent number: 8329489
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting device is provided. The device includes: an n-type semiconductor layer; a p-type semiconductor layer; and a light emitting unit provided between the n-type semiconductor layer and the p-type semiconductor layer. The method includes: forming a buffer layer made of a crystalline AlxGa1-xN (0.8?x?1) on a first substrate made of c-plane sapphire and forming a GaN layer on the buffer layer; stacking the n-type semiconductor layer, the light emitting unit, and the p-type semiconductor layer on the GaN layer; and separating the first substrate by irradiating the GaN layer with a laser having a wavelength shorter than a bandgap wavelength of GaN from the first substrate side through the first substrate and the buffer layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2012
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Yasuo Ohba, Kei Kaneko, Toru Gotoda, Hiroshi Katsuno, Mitsuhiro Kushibe