FIELD EFFECT TRANSISTOR (FET) WITH SELF-ALIGNED DOUBLE GATES ON BULK SILICON SUBSTRATE, METHODS OF FORMING, AND RELATED DESIGN STRUCTURES
At least one isolation trench formed in a layer stack including substrate, channel, and upper gate layers define a channel in the channel layer. Lateral etching from the isolation trench(es) can form lateral cavities in the substrate and upper gate layer to substantially simultaneously form self-aligned lower and upper gates. The lower gate undercuts the channel, the upper gate is narrower than the channel, and a source and a drain can be formed on opposed ends of the channel. As a result, source-drain capacitance and gate-drain capacitance can be reduced, increasing speed of the resulting FET.
The invention relates generally to semiconductor structures and fabrication of semiconductor chips and, in particular, to the fabrication of field effect transistors (FETs) in bulk silicon (Si) substrates. More particularly, aspects of the invention relate to fabrication of junction gate FETs (JFETs) and metal-semiconductor field effect transistors (MESFETs) with self-aligned double gates on and/or in bulk Si substrates.
In fabricating dual-gate FETs, it can be difficult to ensure proper alignment of the gates. As a result, fabrication yield can suffer, increasing costs and time to delivery. Further, conventional dual-gate FETs, typically formed as junction gate FETs (JFETs), can have excessive gate-drain and/or gate-source capacitances, which can increase power consumption and/or threshold voltage of the FET.
SUMMARYAn embodiment of the invention disclosed herein can take the form of a method of fabricating a field effect transistor (FET), including substantially simultaneously forming at least an upper gate in an upper gate layer of a layer stack and a lower gate in a substrate layer of the layer stack in substantial self-alignment with the upper gate.
Another embodiment of the invention disclosed herein can take the form of a field effect transistor (FET), such as an upper gate and a lower gate below and substantially self-aligned with the upper gate. A channel between a bottom of the upper gate and a top of the lower gate can have opposed ends extending beyond the bottom of the upper gate and the top of the lower gate, bottoms of the opposed ends of the channel being undercut by respective cavities that bound sides of the lower gate. A source can be formed on a top of a first of the opposed ends of the channel, and a drain can be formed on a top of a second of the opposed ends of the channel.
A further embodiment of the invention disclosed herein can take the form of a design structure readable by a machine used in design, manufacture, or simulation of an integrated circuit, the design structure including an upper gate and a lower gate below and substantially self-aligned with the upper gate. A channel between a bottom of the upper gate and a top of the lower gate can have opposed ends extending beyond the bottom of the upper gate and the top of the lower gate, bottoms of the opposed ends of the channel being undercut by respective cavities that bound sides of the lower gate. A source can be formed on a top of a first of the opposed ends of the channel, and a drain can be formed on a top of a second of the opposed ends of the channel.
Additional features and advantages are realized through the techniques of the present invention. Other embodiments and aspects of the invention are described in detail herein and are considered a part of the claimed invention. For a better understanding of the invention with the advantages and the features, refer to the description and to the drawings.
The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
In the following description, various components will be described in various stages of fabrication of embodiments of the inventive dual self-aligned gate field effect transistor (FET) disclosed herein, and it is well within the purview of one of ordinary skill in the semiconductor manufacturing arts to choose appropriate techniques and/or processes for the fabrication of the various components and to achieve intermediate states between the various stages shown and described. Examples of semiconductor fabrication techniques that can be employed in various stages include shallow trench isolation (STI), deposition processes, such as, for example, physical vapor deposition (PVD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD), electrochemical deposition (ECD), molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), and atomic layer deposition (ALD); removal processes, such as, for example, wet etching, dry etching, and chemical-mechanical planarization (CMP); patterning/lithography, such as photomasking, exposing, and/or ashing; and/or electrical property modification, such as by doping by diffusion, ion implantation, dielectric constant reduction via ultraviolet light exposure, and/or annealing.
Embodiments of the invention as disclosed herein and/or in accordance with the teachings herein can include substantially simultaneously formed and self-aligned upper and lower gate structures in a field effect transistor (FET) and/or other semiconductor device and/or structure. Advantageously, embodiments can be used to form junction gate field effect transistors (JFETs), metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs), and/or metal-semiconductor field effect transistors (MESFETs) with reduced parasitic capacitances and improved performance. In addition, the teachings herein may additionally be used in the fabrication of various types of heterojunction FETs (HFETs) and could be used in additional semiconductor structures as are now known and/or may be developed in the future. Inasmuch as JFETs, MOSFETs, MESFETs, and HFETs are well understood by those skilled in the art, any omitted details regarding what materials should be used and in what manner are viewed as general knowledge in the art and/or items that can be learned without undue experimentation by one skilled in the art.
With reference to
In embodiments, lower gate 104 can include bulk silicon, such as a modified bulk silicon substrate or other substrate or lower gate layer 112. Channel 106 can include any suitable semiconductor material, such as Si, germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide (GaAs), and/or indium (In), and/or any combination thereof and/or including other materials as may be appropriate. A source 124 can be formed at first end 114 of channel 104 and can have a contact 125 formed on a top 126 of first end 114 through insulative material 120. Likewise, a drain 128 can be formed at second end 116 of channel 106 and can have a contact 129 formed on a top 130 of second end 116 through insulative material 120. In addition, if needed and/or desired, lower gate 104 can include contacts 132, 134 to allow and/or enhance use thereof. Source 124, drain 128, and contacts 132, 134 can include any suitable material and/or can be formed by any suitable method or technique now known in the art or later discovered, so long as appropriate biased P-N or N-P junctions can be established between upper gate 102 and channel 106, and/or between lower gate 104 and channel 106, where FET 100 is a JFET. For example, an upper region of channel 106 beneath upper gate 102 can be doped to produce such a junction. The same or similar could be done to lower gate 104, though this would be far easier to do before deposition of the layer of material used to form channel 106, as will be shown below. If needed, formation of source 124 and/or drain 128 can also include doping of their respective ends 114, 116 of channel 106.
As can be seen in
A method of fabricating a field effect transistor (FET) such as that described above can include, with additional reference to
Channel layer 170 in embodiments can be formed, for example, through low-temperature epitaxy and can include, particularly where a JFET is being formed, SiGe in a thickness of about 300 nanometers (nm), though other thicknesses can be used if desired and/or appropriate. Upper gate layer 166 can then be formed atop channel layer 170 using any suitable method, such as to a thickness of about 300 nm. In embodiments, a lower portion 175 of channel layer 170 can be heavily doped to ensure a satisfactory junction between channel layer and substrate or lower gate layer 112, while a top surface 177 thereof can be undoped. The concentration of an impurity used in doping channel layer 170 can change gradually between its initial heavy doping at a bottom 179 of channel layer 170 and its lack of doping at top 177of channel layer 170, though embodiments can also have stepped or sudden changes in concentration. Oxide layer 118 can then be formed on top surface 167 of upper gate layer 160, such as by any suitable method of deposition or formation as is known in the art, and can have a thickness on the order of 60 nm in embodiments. Alternatively, such as where a JFET is to be produced, further doping can be performed on upper gate layer 166 to ensure a satisfactory junction between upper gate layer 166 and channel 170.
Turning now to
A lateral etch can be performed through isolation trench(es) 172 as seen in
Referring now to
In embodiments, with additional reference to
With additional changes in fabrication process steps of embodiments, the teachings herein can be used to form, as seen in
Dual-gate FETs according to embodiments can be employed as mixer structures with self-aligned gates. For example, with reference to either
Dual gate FETs formed according to embodiments, such as JFET-based HFET 100 of
In embodiments such as those shown in
By employing the teachings according to embodiments of the invention disclosed herein, a dual-gate FET can be substantially simultaneously formed in such a way that the upper and/or lower gates can be self-aligned gate, greatly improving performance and reducing failure rate during fabrication. Further, by employing multiple quantum wells as disclosed above, performance of an FET can be significantly enhanced.
A dual-gate FET according to embodiments of the invention disclosed herein may be implemented as a circuit design structure.
A machine readable computer program may be created by one of skill in the art and stored in computer system 400 or a data and/or any one or more of machine readable medium 475 to simplify the practicing of this invention. In operation, information for the computer program created to run the present invention is loaded on the appropriate removable data and/or program storage device 455, fed through data port 445 or entered using keyboard 465. A user controls the program by manipulating functions performed by the computer program and providing other data inputs via any of the above mentioned data input means. Display device 470 provides a means for the user to accurately control the computer program and perform the desired tasks described herein.
Design process 510 may include using a variety of inputs; for example, inputs from library elements 530 which may house a set of commonly used elements, circuits, and devices, including models, layouts, and symbolic representations, for a given manufacturing technology (e.g., different technology nodes, 32 nm, 45 nm, 50 nm, etc.), design specifications 540, characterization data 550, verification data 560, design rules 570, and test data files 585 (which may include test patterns and other testing information). Design process 510 may further include, for example, standard circuit design processes such as timing analysis, verification, design rule checking, place and route operations, etc. One of ordinary skill in the art of integrated circuit design can appreciate the extent of possible electronic design automation tools and applications used in design process 510 without deviating from the scope and spirit of the invention. The design structure of the invention is not limited to any specific design flow.
Ultimately, design process 510 preferably translates dual-gate FET 100 and/or method of making, along with the rest of the integrated circuit design (if applicable), into a final design structure 590 (e.g., information stored in a GDS storage medium). Final design structure 590 may comprise information such as, for example, test data files, design content files, manufacturing data, layout parameters, wires, levels of metal, vias, shapes, test data, data for routing through the manufacturing line, and any other data required by a semiconductor manufacturer to produce dual-gate FET 100 and/or method of making. Final design structure 580 may then proceed to a stage 585 where, for example, final design structure 580 proceeds to tape-out, is released to manufacturing, is sent to another design house or is sent back to the customer.
The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application or technical improvement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.
Claims
1. A field effect transistor (FET) comprising:
- an upper gate;
- a lower gate below and substantially self-aligned with the upper gate;
- a channel between a bottom of the upper gate and a top of the lower gate and having opposed ends extending beyond the bottom of the upper gate and the top of the lower gate, bottoms of the opposed ends of the channel being undercut by respective cavities that bound sides of the lower gate; and
- a source on a top of a first of the opposed ends of the channel and a drain on a top of a second of the opposed ends of the channel.
2. The FET of claim 1, wherein the channel includes a lower portion having a substantially trapezoidal cross section extending from a bottom of an upper portion of the channel, a bottom of the lower portion meeting and being of substantially identical dimension to the top of the lower gate, wider than a top of the lower portion, and narrower than a bottom of the upper portion.
3. The FET of claim 1, wherein the FET is a JFET including a first junction between the upper gate and the channel, the upper gate and the channel have opposite doping, a second junction between the channel and the lower gate, and the second junction includes a layer of silicon germanium (SiGe).
4. The FET of claim 3, wherein the channel includes alternating layers of a first semiconductor material and SiGe to form a plurality of quantum wells with a layer of SiGe on the bottom of the channel being shared as the layer for the second junction.
5. The FET of claim 1, wherein the channel includes alternating layers of a first semiconductor material and a second semiconductor material to form a plurality of quantum wells.
6. The FET of claim 1, wherein at least one of the upper gate and the lower gate includes a metal deposited on the channel, the channel includes a semiconductor material, and the at least one of the upper gate or the lower gate thereby includes a Schottky barrier.
7. A design structure readable by a machine used in design, manufacture, or simulation of an integrated circuit, the design structure comprising:
- an upper gate;
- a lower gate below and substantially self-aligned with the upper gate;
- a channel between a bottom of the upper gate and a top of the lower gate and having opposed ends extending beyond the bottom of the upper gate and the top of the lower gate, bottoms of the opposed ends of the channel being undercut by respective cavities that bound sides of the lower gate; and
- a source on a top of a first of the opposed ends of the channel and a drain on a top of a second of the opposed ends of the channel.
8. The design structure of claim 7, wherein the design structure comprises a netlist.
9. The design structure of claim 7, wherein the design structure resides on non-transitory storage medium as a data format used for an exchange of layout data of integrated circuits.
10. The design structure of claim 7, wherein the design structure resides in a programmable gate array.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 7, 2016
Publication Date: Aug 4, 2016
Inventors: James W. Adkisson (Jericho, VT), James S. Dunn (Essex Junction, VT), Blaine J. Gross (Essex Junction, VT), David L. Harame (Essex Junction, VT), Qizhi Liu (Lexington, MA), John J. Pekarik (Underhill, VT)
Application Number: 15/092,976