Abstract:
A capacitor structure having a first level of electrically conductive parallel lines and at least a second level of electrically conductive parallel lines disposed over the lines in the first level, the lines of the first and second levels being arranged in vertical rows. A dielectric layer is disposed between the first and second levels of conductive lines. One or more vias connect the first and second level lines in each of the rows, thereby forming a parallel array of vertical capacitor plates. Electrically opposing nodes form the terminals of the capacitor. The parallel array of vertical capacitor plates are electrically connected to the nodes in an alternating manner so that the plates have alternating electrical polarities.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    Commonly-assigned, copending U.S. Patent Application, No. ______, entitled “Combined Transistor-Capacitor structure In Deep Sub-Micron CMOS For Power Amplifiers”, filed ______, 2000.  
         [0002]    Commonly-assigned, copending U.S. Patent Application, No. ______, entitled “Multilayer Pillar Array Capacitor Structure For Deep Sub-Micron CMOS”, filed ______, 2000.  
         [0003]    Commonly-assigned, copending U.S. Patent Application, No. , entitled “Multilayered Capacitor Structure With Alternately Connected Concentric Lines For Deep Sub-Micron CMOS”, filed ______, 2000.  
         [0004]    Commonly-assigned, copending U.S. Patent Application, No. ______, entitled “Multilayer Capacitor Structure Having An Array Of Concentric Ring-Shaped Plates For Deep Sub-Micron CMOS”, filed ______, 2000. 
     
    
     
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0005]    This invention relates to capacitor structures in metal-oxide-semiconductors (MOS), and in particular, to an interdigitated multilayer (IM) capacitor structure for deep sub-micron complementary MOS (CMOS), which is formed by interconnecting conductive lines in multiple levels through vias to construct a parallel array of vertical capacitor plates, and interconnecting the plates to the opposing nodes in an alternating manner so that the plates have alternating electrical polarities.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    Conventional capacitor structures for deep sub-micron CMOS are typically constructed with two flat parallel plates separated by a thin dielectric layer. The plates are formed by layers of conductive material, such as metal or polysilicon. The capacitor structure is usually isolated from the substrate by an underlying dielectric layer. To achieve high capacitance density in these devices, additional plates are provided. FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate a representative conventional multi-parallel plate capacitor  10  in a deep sub-micron CMOS structure. The capacitor structure  10  includes a vertical stack of electrically conductive lines  12  separated by dielectric layers  13 . The conductive lines  12  and dielectric layers  13  are constructed over a semiconductor substrate  11 . The conductive lines  12  form the plates or electrodes of the capacitor  10 . The plates  12  are electrically connected together in an alternating manner such that all the “A” plates are of a first polarity and all the “B” plates are of a second polarity, opposite to the first polarity.  
           [0007]    A major limitation associated with parallel plate capacitor structures is that the minimum distance between the plates does not change as geometries in CMOS processes are scaled down. Hence, gains in capacitance density are not realized during such down scaling.  
           [0008]    Various other capacitor structures with high capacitance densities, such as double polysilicon capacitors and gate-oxide capacitors, are known in the art. Double polysilicon capacitors, however, do not lend themselves to deep sub-micron CMOS processes. Gate-oxide capacitors are generally not used in deep sub-micron CMOS processes because they have large gate areas which cause yield and reliability issues, they generate capacitances which vary with voltage, and may experience high voltages that can breakdown the gate-oxide.  
           [0009]    Trench capacitor structures for dynamic random access memories (DRAMs) have high capacitance densities. Such capacitors are formed by etching a trench in the substrate and filling the trench with conductive and dielectric material to form a vertical capacitance structure. However, trench capacitors are costly to fabricated because they add etching and trench filling processes.  
           [0010]    Interdigitated capacitor structures are used in microwave applications. These capacitors have closely placed, interdigitated conductive line structures which produce fringing and cross-over capacitances therebetween to achieve capacitance. However, the cross-over capacitance produced by interdigitated capacitors is limited to a single conductor level.  
           [0011]    Accordingly, a need exists for an improved capacitor structure for deep sub-micron CMOS, which takes advantage of shrinking semiconductor process geometries and can be manufactured inexpensively.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0012]    A capacitor structure comprising a first level of electrically conductive parallel lines and at least a second level of electrically conductive parallel lines disposed over the lines in the first level, the lines of the first and second levels being arranged in vertical rows. A dielectric layer is disposed between the first and second levels of conductive lines. One or more vias connect the first and second level lines in each of the rows, thereby forming a parallel array of vertical capacitor plates. Electrically opposing nodes form the terminals of the capacitor. The parallel array of vertical capacitor plates are electrically connected to the nodes in an alternating manner so that the plates have alternating electrical polarities.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]    The advantages, nature, and various additional features of the invention will appear more fully upon consideration of the illustrative embodiments now to be described in detail in connection with accompanying drawings wherein:  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1A is a top view of a conventional parallel plate capacitor structure in a deep sub-micron integrated circuit structure;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view through line  1 B- 1 B of FIG. 1A;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 2A is a top view of an interdigitated multilayer (IM) capacitor according to one embodiment of the invention in a deep sub-micron CMOS structure;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a section of the IM capacitor of FIG. 2A;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2C is an end view of the IM capacitor section of FIG. 2B; and  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 is an end view of a conventional interdigitated capacitor.  
         [0020]    It should be understood that the drawings are for purposes of illustrating the concepts of the invention and are not to scale. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0021]    FIGS.  2 A- 2 C illustrate an interdigitated multilayer (IM) capacitor structure  20  according an embodiment of the invention for generating capacitance in deep sub-micron CMOS. The IM capacitor structure  20  is constructed over a substrate  21  of semiconductor material (FIGS. 2B and 2C) in a multiple conductor level process (four electrical conductor levels L 1 -L 4  are depicted for illustrative purposes only). The first conductor level L 1  includes a first parallel array of electrically conductive horizontal lines  22 , the second conductor level L 2  includes a second parallel array of electrically conductive horizontal lines  23 , the third conductor level L 3  includes a third parallel array of electrically conductive horizontal lines  24 , and the fourth conductor level L 4  includes a fourth parallel array of electrically conductive horizontal lines  25 . A first dielectric layer  26  fills the space between the substrate  21  and the first conductor level L 1 ; a second dielectric layer  27  fills the space between the first and second conductor levels L 1 , L 2  and the spaces between the lines  22  of the first conductor level L 1 ; a third dielectric layer  28  fills the space between the second and third conductor levels L 2 , L 3  and the spaces between the lines  23  of the second level L 2 ; a fourth dielectric layer  29  fills the space between the third and fourth conductor levels L 3 , L 4  and the spaces between the lines  24  of the third conductor level L 3 ; and a fifth dielectric layer  34  fills the spaces between the lines  25  of the fourth conductor level L 4 .  
         [0022]    The four levels L 1 -L 4  of conductive lines  23 - 25  are aligned over each other in vertical in rows or stacks. The conductive lines  23 - 25  in each row are electrically interconnected through vertically extending electrically conductive vias  30 - 32  formed in the second, third, and fourth dielectric layers  27 - 29 . The rows of conductive lines  23 - 25  and vias  30 - 32  form a parallel array of vertically extending plates  33  which form the electrodes of the capacitor structure  20 . The vertical plates  33  are electrically interdigitated into “A” and “B” plates of opposite polarity by electrically connecting the top or bottom of the A plates to a first common node A and electrically connecting the top or bottom of the B plates to a second common node B (FIG. 2A). The first and second nodes A, B form the terminals of the IM capacitor structure  20 .  
         [0023]    The mechanism by which the IM capacitor structure  20  of the present invention generates capacitance can be best understood by first examining a conventional single level interdigitated capacitor structure  40  as shown in FIG. 3. The interdigitated capacitor structure  40  has a total capacitance C Total  which is the sum of all the cross-over capacitance C c  between the interdigitated conductive lines  41  and all the fringing capacitance C f  between the interdigitated conductive lines  41 . In the interdigitated capacitor structure  40 , the fringing capacitance C f  is comparable in quantity to the cross-over capacitance C c .  
         [0024]    The IM capacitor structure  20  of the invention also has a total capacitance C Total  which is the sum of all the cross-over capacitance C c  between the interdigitated vertical plates  33  (the sum of the cross-over capacitance between adjacent conductive lines and the cross-over capacitance between adjacent vias) and all the fringing capacitance C f  between the interdigitated vertical plates  33 . However, unlike the conventional interdigitated capacitor structure  40 , the quantity of cross-over capacitance C c  increases with each additional conductor level in the IM capacitor structure  20  while the quantity of fringing capacitance C f  does not change. Hence, the fringing capacitance in the IM capacitor structure  20  contributes less to its total capacitance C Total . As additional conductor levels are used in the IM capacitor structure  20 , the quantity of cross-over capacitance C c  becomes a dominant factor in the capacitor&#39;s total capacitance C Total , while the quantity of fringing capacitance C f  becomes much less significant.  
         [0025]    In present state-of-the-art deep sub-micron CMOS technology, conductive line spacings of about 0.5 microns or less is common. Thus, the minimum distance between the vertical plates of the IM capacitor structure  20  of the invention is typically equal to or less than about 0.5 microns. (The height of the plates is typically greater than about 5 microns when stacking four levels of conductive lines.) The sub-micron spacings between the vertical plates  33  of the IM capacitor structure  20  of the invention provide it with increased capacitance density as compared to what can be achieved using conventional parallel plate capacitor structures.  
         [0026]    The improvement in capacitance density can be seen by comparing the capacitance of a conventional parallel plate capacitor, similar to the one shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, constructed with five ( 5 ) plates and having dimensions of 15 microns×39 microns, with a capacitor constructed with  4  conductor levels according to the invention (FIG. 2A) and having dimensions of 14.9 microns×39 microns. Both capacitors were constructed in a 0.25 micron CMOS process. The parallel plate capacitance between nodes A and B of the parallel plate capacitor was found to be 95 fF, compared to the cross-over capacitance between nodes A and B of the IM capacitor which was found to be 150 fF. Hence, the IM capacitor structure of the present invention provides an increase of about 60 percent in capacitance density.  
         [0027]    As the geometries in semiconductor process technologies continue to shrink and scale down, the capacitance density of the IM capacitor structure  20  of the invention will advantageously increase. This is because the minimum width M w  of the conductive lines  22 - 25  (FIG. 2C), the dimensions of the vias  30 - 32 , the minimum distance M dv  between the vias  30 - 32  in the same vertical plate (FIG. 2B), and the minimum distance M d  between vertical plates  33  (FIG. 2C) of the IM capacitor structure  20  of the invention will advantageously decrease. As a result, the cross-over capacitance C c  of the IM capacitor structure  20  will increase. Such capacitance increases are not possible in conventional multilayer parallel plate capacitor structures because the heights or thicknesses of the conductor and dielectric levels do not scale down. Hence, the distance between the plates will remain about 1 micron in conventional parallel plate capacitor structures.  
         [0028]    The IM capacitor structure of the invention is typically manufactured in silicon using conventional deep sub-micron CMOS processing. The capacitor structure of the invention can also be manufactured in gallium arsenide or any other suitable semiconductor system using conventional deep sub-micron processing. Manufacturing in silicon using deep sub-micron CMOS processing, usually involves growing or depositing a first layer of silicon dioxide on a selected portion of the silicon semiconductor substrate to form the first dielectric layer. The silicon dioxide layer has a thickness in the range of about one micron. A first layer of metal, such as aluminum, or highly conductive polysilicon, is deposited on the first dielectric layer of silicon dioxide and then defined into the conductive lines using well known masking and dry etching techniques to form the first conductor level. As mentioned above, the width and spacing of the conductive lines are set to the minimum dimensions of the process to enhance the capacitance of the structure, i.e., the lines and spacing between the lines are as narrow as possible.  
         [0029]    A second layer of silicon dioxide is then grown or deposited over the conductive lines to form the second dielectric layer. The thickness of the second dielectric layer of silicon dioxide is in the range of about one micron. A plurality of holes, which extend down to the first conductor level are defined in the second dielectric layer of silicon dioxide and then filled with metal or polysilicon using conventional via fabrication techniques to form the vertically extending vias in the second dielectric layer. A second layer of metal, such as aluminum, or polysilicon, is deposited on the second dielectric layer of silicon dioxide and then defined into the conductive lines of the second conductor level. The remaining dielectric layers, vias, conductor levels, and conductive lines are fabricated in the same manner as described above.  
         [0030]    One of ordinary skill in the art will recognized that specialized dielectric materials can be used in place of silicon dioxide (silicon systems) or silicon nitride (galium arsenide systems) to form the dielectric layers. For example a ferro-electric ceramic, such as PLZT (lanthanum-modified lead zirconate tantalate) can be used to form the dielectric layers. The use of PLZT layers greatly enhances capacitance as PLZT has a dielectric constant of approximately 4,700, in contrast to 3.9 for the dielectric constant of silicon dioxide.  
         [0031]    The ordinary skill artisan will further recognize that the IM capacitor structure of the invention can be useful in many applications, such as RF, analog and digital applications. RF circuit applications employ capacitors for matching. The larger the capacitance per unit area, the smaller the area and the lower the cost. In analog circuit applications, undesirable noise can often be reduced by using large capacitors (KT/C). In digital circuit applications, large decoupling capacitances are often very important and can be easily provided with the capacitor of the invention.  
         [0032]    While the foregoing invention has been described with reference to the above embodiments, additional modifications and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, all such modifications and changes are considered to be within the scope of the appended claims.