545 results about "Strained silicon" patented technology

A method for forming a strained SiN film and a semiconductor device containing the strained SiN film. The method includes exposing the substrate to a gas including a silicon precursor, exposing the substrate to a gas containing a nitrogen precursor activated by a plasma source at a first level of plasma power and configured to react with the silicon precursor with a first reactivity characteristic, and exposing the substrate to a gas containing the nitrogen precursor activated by the plasma source at a second level of plasma power different from the first level and configured to react with the silicon precursor with a second reactivity characteristic such that a property of the silicon nitride film formed on the substrate changes to provide the strained silicon nitride film.

Disclosing is a strained silicon finFET device having a strained silicon fin channel in a double gate finFET structure. The disclosed finFET device is a double gate MOSFET consisting of a silicon fin channel controlled by a self-aligned double gate for suppressing short channel effect and enhancing drive current. The silicon fin channel of the disclosed finFET device is a strained silicon fin channel, comprising a strained silicon layer deposited on a seed fin having different lattice constant, for example, a silicon layer deposited on a silicon germanium seed fin, or a carbon doped silicon layer deposited on a silicon seed fin. The lattice mismatch between the silicon layer and the seed fin generates the strained silicon fin channel in the disclosed finFET device to improve hole and electron mobility enhancement, in addition to short channel effect reduction characteristic inherently in a finFET device.

The invention forms an epitaxial silicon-containing layer on a silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface and avoids creating a rough surface upon which the epitaxial silicon-containing layer is grown. In order to avoid creating the rough surface, the invention first performs a hydrofluoric acid etching process on the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface. This etching process removes most of oxide from the surface, and leaves a first amount of oxygen (typically 1×1013−1×1015 / cm2 of oxygen) on the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface. The invention then performs a hydrogen pre-bake process which heats the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface sufficiently to remove additional oxygen from the surface and leave a second amount of oxygen, less than the first amount, on the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface. The heating process leaves an amount of at least 5×1012 / cm2 of oxygen (typically, between approximately 1×1013 / cm2 and approximately 5×1013 / cm2 of oxygen) on the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface. By leaving a small amount of oxygen on the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned silicon-on-insulator surface, the heating processes avoid changing the roughness of the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned thin silicon-on-insulator surface. Then the process of epitaxially growing the epitaxial silicon-containing layer on the silicon germanium, patterned strained silicon, or patterned silicon-on-insulator surface is performed.

With the invention, it is possible to avoid deterioration in short-channel characteristics, caused by a silicon germanium layer coming into contact with the channel of a strained SOI transistor. Further, it is possible to fabricate a double-gate type of strained SOI transistor or to implement mixedly mounting the strained SOI transistor and a conventional silicon or SOI transistor on the same wafer. According to the invention, for example, a strained silicon layer is grown on a strain-relaxed silicon germanium layer, and subsequently, portions of the silicon germanium layer are removed, thereby constituting a channel layer in the strained silicon layer.

Methods of forming a strained Si-containing hybrid substrate are provided as well as the strained Si-containing hybrid substrate formed by the methods. In the methods of the present invention, a strained Si layer is formed overlying a regrown semiconductor material, a second semiconducting layer, or both. In accordance with the present invention, the strained Si layer has the same crystallographic orientation as either the regrown semiconductor layer or the second semiconducting layer. The methods provide a hybrid substrate in which at least one of the device layers includes strained Si.

A method for fabricating a strained-silicon semiconductor device to ameliorate undesirable variation in selectively grown epitaxial film thickness. The layout or component configuration for the proposed semiconductor device is evaluated to determine areas of relatively light or dense population in order to determine whether local-loading-effect defects are likely to occur. If a possibility of such defects occurring exists, a dummy pattern of epitaxial structures may be indicated. If so, the dummy pattern appropriate to the proposed layout is created, incorporated into the mask design, and then implemented on the substrate along with the originally-proposed component configuration.

The invention provides integrated semiconductor devices that are formed upon an SOI substrate having different crystal orientations that provide optimal performance for a specific device. Specifically, an integrated semiconductor structure including at least an SOI substrate having a top semiconductor layer of a first crystallographic orientation and a semiconductor material of a second crystallographic orientation, wherein the semiconductor material is substantially coplanar and of substantially the same thickness as that of the top semiconductor layer and the first crystallographic orientation is different from the second crystallographic orientation is provided. The SOI substrate is formed by forming an opening into a structure that includes at least a first semiconductor layer and a second semiconductor layer that have different crystal orientations. The opening extends to the first semiconductor layer. A semiconductor material is epitaxial grown in the opening and then various etching and etch back processing steps are used in forming the SOI substrate.