Abstract: A method of operating a flash memory structure including a programming step. The method includes providing a flash memory device, the flash memory device comprising a substrate of first conductivity type, a source region of second conductivity type being defined in the substrate and a drain region of second conductivity type defined in the substrate. The flash memory device can be a split gate, a stacked gate, or other type of physical structure. The method includes applying a drain voltage of first polarity type on the drain region and applying a control gate voltage of a first conductivity type on the control gate. The method also includes applying a source voltage of second polarity type ranging from about 0.1 volt to about 0.5 volt on the source region, while maintaining a ground potential on the substrate to inject electrons onto a floating gate to program the floating gate.

Abstract: A method of operating a flash memory structure including a programming step. The method includes providing a flash memory device, the flash memory device comprising a substrate of first conductivity type, a source region of second conductivity type being defined in the substrate and a drain region of second conductivity type defined in the substrate. The flash memory device can be a split gate, a stacked gate, or other type of physical structure. The method includes applying a drain voltage of first polarity type on the drain region and applying a control gate voltage of a first conductivity type on the control gate. The method also includes applying a source voltage of second polarity type ranging from about 0.1 volt to about 0.5 volt on the source region, while maintaining a ground potential on the substrate to inject electrons onto a floating gate to program the floating gate.

Abstract: A compact, low current flash EPROM cell that is scaleable to dee-submicron levels for future generations of flash memory arrays is disclosed. This flash memory cell can be fabricated using a twelve masks, triple-poly, salicided process. Source-side injection for programming and poly-to-poly erasing demand very little current and power and such demand can easily be met by charge pump techniques. A select gate in series with the cell channel guarantees enhancement threshold and its sell-alignment and constant channel length will give uniform electrical characteristics in every respect. A virtual ground array fabricated using a self-aligned salicidation process provides a compact cell with high access speed. The cell area is approximately 3F.times.2F where F is a given minimum dimension.

Abstract: A method for making air-insulated planar metal interconnections having low interlevel capacitance with improved RC time delays for integrated circuits is achieved. The method involves using a multilayer of negative and positive photoresists in which open regions are developed in the negative photoresist for the metal interconnections, and open regions are developed in the positive photoresist for via holes. The open regions are then filled with a Ti/TiN diffusion barrier deposited at room temperature and an electroless plated copper, and polished back using a Dual Damazene to form the interconnecting metal level and the via hole stud. The method is repeated several times to form multilevel metal interconnections. The remaining photoresist is then totally removed by oxygen ashing to leave a free-standing multilevel metal interconnection structure that is conformally coated with a thin Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 passivation layer and having air insulation.

Abstract: A method of programming a flash memory device. The method includes a step of applying a voltage that is less than a threshold voltage to a select gate of a flash memory device. Electrons are transferred from a source/drain region or preferably the source region through a region underlying the select gate to a channel region underlying a floating gate. The transferring step occurs using an electron gradient from a higher concentration region in the source region to a lower concentration region in the channel region. By way of a selected voltage applied to a control gate, one of a plurality of selected voltage levels are applied to the floating gate.

Abstract: An improved method for fabricating dynamic random access memory (DRAM) cell having a fin-shaped capacitor with increased capacitance was achieved. The capacitor is fabricated over the bit lines and makes contact to the source/drain area of a field effect transistor (FET). The capacitor with increased capacitance is formed by depositing an N doped polysilicon layer making electrical contact to the source/drain of the FET. A sacrificial oxide layer is deposited and a contact opening formed over the DRAM cell area to the polysilicon layer. A second polysilicon layer is deposited and patterned over the sacrificial oxide layer forming the top fin portion of the capacitor, which makes electrical contact to the first polysilicon layer through the contact opening. The sacrificial oxide layer is then completely removed by wet etching, while the underlying polysilicon layer provides a very important etch stop to protect the substrate structures.

Abstract: A technique is disclosed for obtaining a self-aligned twin-well structure in a CMOS process. A double layer of two different photoresist materials is employed to obtain an overhang photoresist structure used for the p-well masking and ion implantation process. After the p-well implantation, pure aluminum is deposited over the wafer, forming a first layer over the p-well region and a second layer over the photoresist layers. A metal lift-off procedure is performed to dissolve the photoresist layers and thereby remove the second layer of metal. The first layer of aluminum remaining on the wafer forms a conjugate of the p-well pattern and serves as the n-well mask for ion implantation. The invention provides a straightforward method for achieving the self-aligned twin-well structure in CMOS processes, and is adapted to high energy ion implantation for achieving retrograde impurity profiles.

Abstract: A complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) structure having the source and drain regions of individual transistor devices separated from the peak impurity concentrations of the respective N- and P-wells of such devices. The CMOS structure includes trenches between the individual transistor devices, and highly doped field regions are formed in the bottom of the trenches. Each N- and P-well includes a retrograde impurity concentration profile and extends beneath adjacent trenches.

Abstract: Inter-layer electrical shorting between layers of conductors of an integrated circuit caused by "hillocks" in the bottom layer is prevented by the use of a double layer photoresist coatings atop the insulating layer that separates the metal layers. The double layer photoresist insures that irregularities in the dielectric layer caused by hillocks in the underlying insulating layer do not cause a break in the photoresist and a subsequent undesired etching of a spurious "via" through the dielectric layer.

Abstract: A process of fabricating high density CMOS integrated circuits having conductively interconnected wells. The conductive interconnection is provided by a buried conductor formed in combination with channel stops encircling each of the wells and prior to the fabrication of FET active devices at the surface of the wells. The channel stops, as provided by the process, are automatically aligned with and spaced apart from the source and drain regions of their respective FETs.

Abstract: A process of fabricating high density CMOS integrated circuits having conductively interconnected wells. The conductive interconnection is provided by a buried conductor formed in combination with channel stops encircling each of the wells and prior to the fabrication of FET active devices at the surface of the wells. The channel stops, as provided by the process, are automatically aligned with and spaced apart from the source and drain regions of their respective FETs.

Abstract: A charge coupled display device for providing a visual image in response to electrical signals applied thereto. The display device preferably utilizes a plurality of charge coupled lines each arranged and controlled so as to operate generally as a shift register, with each of the lines representing one line of the display. Each location in each charge coupled line is caused to contain a charge representative of the image intensity at that point by stepping the charges sequentially along the line from the side, putting in the desired charge for each point in the image.