Patents by Inventor Isaac Lauer

Isaac Lauer has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9536885
    Abstract: A semiconductor device including a pFET and an nFET where: (i) the gate and conductor channel of the pFET are electrically insulated from a buried oxide layer; and (ii) the conductor channel of the nFET is in the form of a fin extending upwards from, and in electrical contact with, the buried oxide layer. Also, a method of making the pFET by adding a fin structure extending from the top surface of the buried oxide layer, then condensing germanium locally into the lattice structure of the lower portion of the fin structure, and then etching away the lower portion of the fin structure so that it becomes a carrier channel suspended above, and electrically insulated from the buried oxide layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2017
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Leland Chang, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160380049
    Abstract: A semiconductor device includes a wafer having a bulk layer and a III-V buffer layer on an upper surface of the bulk layer. The semiconductor device further includes at least one semiconductor fin on the III-V buffer layer. The semiconductor fin includes a III-V channel portion. Either the wafer or the semiconductor fin includes an oxidized III-V portion interposed between the III-V channel portion and the III-V buffer layer to prevent current leakage to the bulk layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 24, 2015
    Publication date: December 29, 2016
    Inventors: Szu-Lin Cheng, Isaac Lauer, Kuen-Ting Shiu, Jeng-Bang Yau
  • Publication number: 20160379820
    Abstract: A semiconductor device includes a wafer having a bulk layer and a III-V buffer layer on an upper surface of the bulk layer. The semiconductor device further includes at least one semiconductor fin on the III-V buffer layer. The semiconductor fin includes a III-V channel portion. Either the wafer or the semiconductor fin includes an oxidized III-V portion interposed between the III-V channel portion and the III-V buffer layer to prevent current leakage to the bulk layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 23, 2015
    Publication date: December 29, 2016
    Inventors: Szu-Lin Cheng, Isaac Lauer, Kuen-Ting Shiu, Jeng-Bang Yau
  • Patent number: 9530876
    Abstract: At least one semiconductor nanowire laterally abutted by a pair of semiconductor pad portions is formed over an insulator layer. Portions of the insulator layer are etched from underneath the at least one semiconductor nanowire such that the at least one semiconductor nanowire is suspended. A temporary fill material is deposited over the at least one semiconductor nanowire, and is planarized to physically expose top surfaces of the pair of semiconductor pad portions. Trenches are formed within the pair of semiconductor pad portions, and are filled with stress-generating materials. The temporary fill material is subsequently removed. The at least one semiconductor nanowire is strained along the lengthwise direction with a tensile strain or a compressive strain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Isaac Lauer, Chung-Hsun Lin, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160359011
    Abstract: In one aspect, a method of forming a CMOS device with multiple transistors having different Vt's is provided which includes: forming nanowires and pads on a wafer, wherein the nanowires are suspended at varying heights above an oxide layer of the wafer; and forming gate stacks of the transistors at least partially surrounding portions of each of the nanowires by: i) depositing a conformal gate dielectric around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires; ii) depositing a conformal workfunction metal on the conformal gate dielectric around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires, wherein an amount of the conformal workfunction metal deposited around the nanowires is varied based on the varying heights at which the nanowires are suspended over the oxide layer; and iii) depositing a conformal poly-silicon layer on the conformal workfunction metal around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 22, 2016
    Publication date: December 8, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9496184
    Abstract: In one aspect, a method of fabricating a bipolar transistor device on a wafer includes the following steps. A dummy gate is formed on the wafer, wherein the dummy gate is present over a portion of the wafer that serves as a base of the bipolar transistor. The wafer is doped to form emitter and collector regions on both sides of the dummy gate. A dielectric filler layer is deposited onto the wafer surrounding the dummy gate. The dummy gate is removed selective to the dielectric filler layer, thereby exposing the base. The base is recessed. The base is re-grown from an epitaxial material selected from the group consisting of: SiGe, Ge, and a III-V material. Contacts are formed to the base. Techniques for co-fabricating a bipolar transistor and CMOS FET devices are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Gen P. Lauer, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9496338
    Abstract: A nanowire field effect transistor (FET) device includes a first source/drain region and a second source/drain region. Each of the first and second source/drain regions are formed on an upper surface of a bulk semiconductor substrate. A gate region is interposed between the first and second source/drain regions, and directly on the upper surface of the bulk semiconductor substrate. A plurality of nanowires are formed only in the gate region. The nanowires are suspended above the semiconductor substrate and define gate channels of the nanowire FET device. A gate structure includes a gate electrode formed in the gate region such that the gate electrode contacts an entire surface of each nanowire.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Assignee: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9466673
    Abstract: A silicon germanium on insulator (SGOI) wafer having nFET and pFET regions is accessed, the SGOI wafer having a silicon germanium (SiGe) layer having a first germanium (Ge) concentration, and a first oxide layer over nFET and pFET and removing the first oxide layer over the pFET. Then, increasing the first Ge concentration in the SiGe layer in the pFET to a second Ge concentration and removing the first oxide layer over the nFET. Then, recessing the SiGe layer of the first Ge concentration in the nFET so that the SiGe layer is in plane with the SiGe layer in the pFET of the second Ge concentration. Then, growing a silicon (Si) layer over the SGOI in the nFET and a SiGe layer of a third concentration in the pFET, where the SiGe layer of a third concentration is in plane with the grown nFET Si layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Gen P. Lauer, Isaac Lauer, Alexander Reznicek, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160293610
    Abstract: A semiconductor device including a pFET and an nFET where: (i) the gate and conductor channel of the pFET are electrically insulated from a buried oxide layer; and (ii) the conductor channel of the nFET is in the form of a fin extending upwards from, and in electrical contact with, the buried oxide layer. Also, a method of making the pFET by adding a fin structure extending from the top surface of the buried oxide layer, then condensing germanium locally into the lattice structure of the lower portion of the fin structure, and then etching away the lower portion of the fin structure so that it becomes a carrier channel suspended above, and electrically insulated from the buried oxide layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2015
    Publication date: October 6, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Leland Chang, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160284810
    Abstract: In one aspect, a method of forming a CMOS device with multiple transistors having different Vt's is provided which includes: forming nanowires and pads on a wafer, wherein the nanowires are suspended at varying heights above an oxide layer of the wafer; and forming gate stacks of the transistors at least partially surrounding portions of each of the nanowires by: i) depositing a conformal gate dielectric around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires; ii) depositing a conformal workfunction metal on the conformal gate dielectric around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires, wherein an amount of the conformal workfunction metal deposited around the nanowires is varied based on the varying heights at which the nanowires are suspended over the oxide layer; and iii) depositing a conformal poly-silicon layer on the conformal workfunction metal around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 27, 2015
    Publication date: September 29, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160284604
    Abstract: In one aspect, a method of forming a CMOS device includes forming nanowires suspended over a BOX, wherein a first/second one or more of the nanowires are suspended at a first/second suspension height over the BOX, and wherein the first suspension height is greater than the second suspension height; depositing a conformal gate dielectric on the BOX and around the nanowires wherein the conformal gate dielectric deposited on the BOX is i) in a non-contact position with the conformal gate dielectric deposited around the first one or more of the nanowires, and ii) is in direct physical contact with the conformal gate dielectric deposited around the second one or more of the nanowires such that the BOX serves as an oxygen source during growth of a conformal oxide layer at the interface between the conformal gate dielectric and the second one or more of the nanowires.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 27, 2015
    Publication date: September 29, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160284805
    Abstract: A device that includes: a substrate layer; a first set of source/drain component(s) defining an nFET (n-type field-effect transistor) region; a second set of source/drain component(s) defining a pFET (p-type field-effect transistor) region; a first suspended nanowire, at least partially suspended over the substrate layer in the nFET region and made from III-V material; and a second suspended nanowire, at least partially suspended over the substrate layer in the pFET region and made from Germanium-containing material. In some embodiments, the first suspended nanowire and the second suspended nanowire are fabricated by adding appropriate nanowire layers on top of a Germanium-containing release layer, and then removing the Germanium-containing release layers so that the nanowires are suspended.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 14, 2016
    Publication date: September 29, 2016
    Inventors: Guy M. Cohen, Isaac Lauer, Alexander Reznicek, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160276432
    Abstract: A nanowire field effect transistor (FET) device includes a first source/drain region and a second source/drain region. Each of the first and second source/drain regions are formed on an upper surface of a bulk semiconductor substrate. A gate region is interposed between the first and second source/drain regions, and directly on the upper surface of the bulk semiconductor substrate. A plurality of nanowires are formed only in the gate region. The nanowires are suspended above the semiconductor substrate and define gate channels of the nanowire FET device. A gate structure includes a gate electrode formed in the gate region such that the gate electrode contacts an entire surface of each nanowire.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2015
    Publication date: September 22, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9449820
    Abstract: Techniques for reducing nanowire dimension and pitch are provided. In one aspect, a pitch multiplication method for nanowires includes the steps of: providing an SOI wafer having an SOI layer separated from a substrate by a BOX, wherein the SOI layer includes Si; patterning at least one nanowire in the SOI layer, wherein the at least one nanowire as-patterned has a square cross-sectional shape with flat sides; growing epitaxial SiGe on the outside of the at least one nanowire using an epitaxial process selective for growth of the epitaxial SiGe on the flat sides of the at least one nanowire; removing the at least one nanowire selective to the epitaxial SiGe, wherein the epitaxial SiGe that remains includes multiple epitaxial SiGe wires having been formed in place of the at least one nanowire that has been removed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Guy M. Cohen, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9443949
    Abstract: In one aspect, a method of forming a CMOS device with multiple transistors having different Vt's is provided which includes: forming nanowires and pads on a wafer, wherein the nanowires are suspended at varying heights above an oxide layer of the wafer; and forming gate stacks of the transistors at least partially surrounding portions of each of the nanowires by: i) depositing a conformal gate dielectric around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires; ii) depositing a conformal workfunction metal on the conformal gate dielectric around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires, wherein an amount of the conformal workfunction metal deposited around the nanowires is varied based on the varying heights at which the nanowires are suspended over the oxide layer; and iii) depositing a conformal poly-silicon layer on the conformal workfunction metal around the nanowires and on the wafer beneath the nanowires.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9437613
    Abstract: In one aspect, a method of forming a multiple VT device structure includes the steps of: forming an alternating series of channel and barrier layers as a stack having at least one first channel layer, at least one first barrier layer, and at least one second channel layer; defining at least one first and at least one second active area in the stack; selectively removing the at least one first channel/barrier layers from the at least one second active area, such that the at least one first channel layer and the at least one second channel layer are the top-most layers in the stack in the at least one first and the at least one second active areas, respectively, wherein the at least one first barrier layer is configured to confine charge carriers to the at least one first channel layer in the first active area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Isaac Lauer, Amlan Majumdar, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Patent number: 9431301
    Abstract: A semiconductor structure includes a plurality of semiconductor fins located on a semiconductor substrate, in which each of the semiconductor fins comprises a sequential stack of a buffered layer including a III-V semiconductor material and a channel layer including a III-V semiconductor material. The semiconductor structure further includes a gap filler material surrounding the semiconductor fins and including a plurality of trenches therein. The released portions of the channel layers of the semiconductor fins located in the trenches constitute nanowire channels of the semiconductor structure, and opposing end portions of the channel layers of the semiconductor fins located outside of the trenches constitute a source region and a drain region of the semiconductor structure, respectively. In addition, the semiconductor structure further includes a plurality of gates structures located within the trenches that surround the nanowire channels in a gate all around configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2016
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Jack O. Chu, Szu Lin Cheng, Isaac Lauer, Kuen-Ting Shiu, Jeng-Bang Yau
  • Publication number: 20160233304
    Abstract: A method of making a field-effect transistor device includes providing a substrate with a fin stack having: a first sacrificial material layer on the substrate, a first semiconductive material layer on the first sacrificial material layer, and a second sacrificial material layer on the first semiconductive material layer. The method includes inserting a dummy gate having a second thickness, a dummy void, and an outer end that is coplanar to the second face. The method includes inserting a first spacer having a first thickness and a first void, and having an outer end that is coplanar to the first face. The method includes etching the first sacrificial material layer in the second plane and the second sacrificial material layer in the fourth plane. The method includes removing, at least partially, the first spacer. The method also includes inserting a second spacer having the first thickness.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 20, 2016
    Publication date: August 11, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Gen P. Lauer, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160233320
    Abstract: A method of making a field-effect transistor device includes providing a substrate with a fin stack having: a first sacrificial material layer on the substrate, a first semiconductive material layer on the first sacrificial material layer, and a second sacrificial material layer on the first semiconductive material layer. The method includes inserting a dummy gate having a second thickness, a dummy void, and an outer end that is coplanar to the second face. The method includes inserting a first spacer having a first thickness and a first void, and having an outer end that is coplanar to the first face. The method includes etching the first sacrificial material layer in the second plane and the second sacrificial material layer in the fourth plane. The method includes removing, at least partially, the first spacer. The method also includes inserting a second spacer having the first thickness.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 20, 2016
    Publication date: August 11, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Gen P. Lauer, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight
  • Publication number: 20160233314
    Abstract: A method of making a field-effect transistor device includes providing a substrate with a fin stack having: a first sacrificial material layer on the substrate, a first semiconductive material layer on the first sacrificial material layer, and a second sacrificial material layer on the first semiconductive material layer. The method includes inserting a dummy gate having a second thickness, a dummy void, and an outer end that is coplanar to the second face. The method includes inserting a first spacer having a first thickness and a first void, and having an outer end that is coplanar to the first face. The method includes etching the first sacrificial material layer in the second plane and the second sacrificial material layer in the fourth plane. The method includes removing, at least partially, the first spacer. The method also includes inserting a second spacer having the first thickness.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 20, 2016
    Publication date: August 11, 2016
    Inventors: Josephine B. Chang, Michael A. Guillorn, Gen P. Lauer, Isaac Lauer, Jeffrey W. Sleight