Abstract: A method for manufacturing a metal insulator metal (MIM) trench capacitor, the method may include forming a cavity in an Intermetal Dielectric stack, wherein a bottom of the cavity exposes a lower metal layer; wherein the Intermetal Dielectric stack comprises a top dielectric layer; depositing a first metal layer on a bottom of a cavity and on sidewalls of the cavity; depositing a sacrificial layer over the first metal layer; filling the cavity with a filling material; removing, by a planarization process, a portion of the sacrificial layer positioned above the top dielectric layer and a portion of the first metal layer positioned above the top dielectric layer to expose an upper portion of the sacrificial layer and an upper portion of the first metal layer; forming a recess by removing the upper portion of the sacrificial layer and the upper portion the first metal layer while using the filling material as a mask; removing the filling material by a first removal process that is selective to the sacrificial l

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a metal insulator metal (MIM) trench capacitor, the method may include forming a cavity in an Intermetal Dielectric stack, wherein a bottom of the cavity exposes a lower metal layer; wherein the Intermetal Dielectric stack comprises a top dielectric layer; depositing a first metal layer on a bottom of a cavity and on sidewalls of the cavity; depositing a sacrificial layer over the first metal layer; filling the cavity with a filling material; removing, by a planarization process, a portion of the sacrificial layer positioned above the top dielectric layer and a portion of the first metal layer positioned above the top dielectric layer to expose an upper portion of the sacrificial layer and an upper portion of the first metal layer; forming a recess by removing the upper portion of the sacrificial layer and the upper portion the first metal layer while using the filling material as a mask; removing the filling material by a first removal process that is selective to the sacrificial l

Abstract: A method for improving the reliability of a high-k dielectric layer or a high-k dielectric stack by forming an amorphous high-k dielectric layer over an insulating layer, doping the amorphous high-k dielectric layer with nitrogen atoms, and subsequently heating the resulting structure at a temperature greater than or equal to the crystallization temperature of the high-k dielectric material, thereby transforming the high-k dielectric material from an amorphous state to a crystalline state, and causing nitrogen atoms to diffuse into the insulating layer.

Abstract: A capacitor structure is fabricated with only slight modifications to a conventional single-poly CMOS process. After front-end processing is completed, grooves are etched through the pre-metal dielectric layer to expose polysilicon structures, which may be salicided or non-salicided. A dielectric layer is formed over the exposed polysilicon structures. A conventional contact process module is then used to form contact openings through the pre-metal dielectric layer. The mask used to form the contact openings is then removed, and conventional contact metal deposition steps are performed, thereby simultaneously filling the contact openings and the grooves with the contact (electrode) metal stack. A planarization step removes the upper portion of the metal stack, thereby leaving metal contacts in the contact openings, and metal electrodes in the grooves. The metal electrodes may form, for example, transistor gates, EEPROM control gates or capacitor plates.

Abstract: A capacitor structure is fabricated with only slight modifications to a conventional single-poly CMOS process. After front-end processing is completed, grooves are etched through the pre-metal dielectric layer to expose polysilicon structures, which may be salicided or non-salicided. A dielectric layer is formed over the exposed polysilicon structures. A conventional contact process module is then used to form contact openings through the pre-metal dielectric layer. The mask used to form the contact openings is then removed, and conventional contact metal deposition steps are performed, thereby simultaneously filling the contact openings and the grooves with the contact (electrode) metal stack. A planarization step removes the upper portion of the metal stack, thereby leaving metal contacts in the contact openings, and metal electrodes in the grooves. The metal electrodes may form, for example, transistor gates, EEPROM control gates or capacitor plates.

Abstract: A method for improving the reliability of a high-k dielectric layer or a high-k dielectric stack by forming an amorphous high-k dielectric layer over an insulating layer, doping the amorphous high-k dielectric layer with nitrogen atoms, and subsequently heating the resulting structure at a temperature greater than or equal to the crystallization temperature of the high-k dielectric material, thereby transforming the high-k dielectric material from an amorphous state to a crystalline state, and causing nitrogen atoms to diffuse into the insulating layer.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for treating devices based on semiconductor and dielectric materials for improving their electrical, photoelectric, optical, luminescent and noise characteristics, for decreasing internal residual stresses in heterostructures and for increasing the device lifetime and the stability of its parameters. The method comprises subjecting the device to acoustic vibrations in the frequency range of 0.01 to 100 MHz, at an amplitude of relative acoustic strain in the range of 0.2.multidot.10.sup.-5 to 8.multidot.10.sup.-5, for a period of at least 0.25 hour.