Abstract:
An MFIS memory array having a plurality of MFIS memory transistors with a word line connecting a plurality of MFIS memory transistor gates, wherein all MFIS memory transistors connected to a common word line have a common source, each transistor drain serves as a bit output, and all MFIS channels along a word line are separated by a P+ region and are further joined to a P+ substrate region on an SOI substrate by a P+ region is provided. Also provided are methods of making an MFIS memory array on an SOI substrate; methods of performing a block erase of one or more word lines, and methods of selectively programming a bit.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application is a Divisional of a pending patent application entitled, MFIS FERROELECTRIC MEMORY ARRAY ON SOI AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME, invented by Hsu et al., Ser. No. 10/953,912, filed Sep. 28, 2004. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present device structures and methods of manufacture relate generally to semiconductor technology and more particularly to metal-ferroelectric-insulator-semiconductor (MFIS) transistor structures and methods of their fabrication. An MFIS transistor is similar to an MFOS transistor, in which the gate dielectric may be silicon oxide or other gate insulator, including high-k materials.  
         [0003]     Previously single transistor ferroelectric memory arrays have been made on bulk silicon. Ferroelectric memory arrays on bulk silicon may be block erased by applying a bias to the substrate, or the p-well. This method of performing a block erase is not suitable to devices formed on thin, fully depleted, SOI devices, where the body bias is not reliable. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0004]      FIG. 1  is top view of an MFIS ferroelectric memory array structure during initial fabrication.  
         [0005]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view taken along  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0006]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view taken along  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0007]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 2  following additional processing.  
         [0008]      FIG. 5 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 3  following additional processing.  
         [0009]      FIG. 6 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 4  following additional processing.  
         [0010]      FIG. 7 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 5  following additional processing.  
         [0011]      FIG. 8 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 6  following additional processing.  
         [0012]      FIG. 9 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 7  following additional processing.  
         [0013]      FIG. 10 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 8  following additional processing.  
         [0014]      FIG. 11 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 9  following additional processing.  
         [0015]      FIG. 12 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 10  following additional processing.  
         [0016]      FIG. 13 a  cross-sectional view corresponding to  FIG. 11  following additional processing.  
         [0017]      FIG. 14  is top view of a MFIS ferroelectric memory array structure. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0018]     A silicon on insulator (SOI) substrate is prepared. The silicon film is thinned to provide a structure suitable for full depletion operation of the resulting device. The thinning may be accomplished using thermal oxidation and oxide removal. An ion implant may be performed to adjust the threshold voltage of the resulting device. Using photoresist to selectively etch silicon from the field region of the control area, which will later include the non-memory transistors.  
         [0019]     Once the SOI substrate is prepared, silicon dioxide is thermally grown to form a gate oxide layer. Alternatively, the silicon dioxide is deposited to form a gate oxide layer. A gate layer is then deposited overlying the gate oxide layer. The gate layer may comprise polysilicon, silicon germanium, or other suitable material as sacrificial gate for memory transistors and the final gate electrodes for the non-memory transistors. The gate layer may be doped as either N+ or P+. The gate layer may be formed to a thickness of between approximately 50 nm and 300 nm. A silicon dioxide hard mask layer is then deposited overlying the gate layer, followed by the deposition of a nitride hard mask layer overlying the silicon dioxide hard mask layer. Both the silicon dioxide hard mask layer and the nitride hard mask layer may be formed to a thickness of between approximately 20 nm and 50 nm. Although, silicon dioxide and nitride have been discussed as possible hard mask materials, other hard mask materials, which are suitable for selective etching, such as Ti, TiN, Al 2 O 3 , may also be used  
         [0020]     A layer of photoresist is then deposited and patterned to provide protection for the gate areas, which will correspond to the word lines in the memory array structure. The nitride hard mask is etched, leaving the nitride hard mask over the gate areas. The layer of photoresist is then removed.  
         [0021]      FIG. 1  shows a top view of an MFIS ferroelectric memory array structure  10  during initial fabrication. Another layer of photoresist  12  is deposited and patterned to provide protection for an active area. The nitride hard mask  14  is shown over the gate areas.  
         [0022]     Referring now to  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view taken along  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view taken along  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 . Using the combination of the photoresist  12  and the nitride hard mask  14 , etch through the silicon dioxide hard mask  16 , the gate layer  18 , the gate oxide layer  20 , and the silicon film  22  of the SOI substrate, leaving an insulator  24  and the backing substrate  26 , if any, from the SOI substrate  28 . This etch step will produce isolated islands of active area SOI regions separated by regions of insulator  24  without overlying silicon film. The photoresist  12  should not be stripped at this point.  
         [0023]     If the photoresist  12  remains intact, it will be used as the mask to etch through the nitride hard mask  14 , the silicon oxide hard mask  16 , and the gate layer  18 , as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . Any state-of-the-art P+ ion implantation is then used to dope the exposed portions of the silicon film  22  through the gate oxide layer  20  to form P+ regions  30 . For example, a boron ion implantation at an energy of between approximately 1 keV and 10 keV and dose of 5×10 14 /cm 2  to 5×10 15 /cm 2  may be used for this ion implantation. The photoresist  12  should be stripped following the P+ implant. If the photoresist  12  was not sufficiently intact, it could be stripped and re-patterned. This may be less desirable as it does not provide as much self-alignment between etching steps.  
         [0024]     A layer of silicon dioxide  32  is then deposited, for example using CVD deposition. A partial etch back is then performed to remove silicon dioxide until nitride hard mask  14  is exposed. This etch back may be any dry etch process or CMP process or the combination of CMP followed by wet or dry etch process. This partial etch back will also expose the gate layer  18  where it is not covered by the nitride hard mask  14 , as shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 . The initial CVD deposition should be sufficiently thick that following the partial etch back a layer of silicon oxide between approximately 100 nm and 250 nm remains overlying the P+ regions  30 .  
         [0025]     The exposed gate layer  18  is then etched using an anisotropic etch to remove it from regions not covered by the nitride hard mask  14 , as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 . Two ion implants are then performed. One is an N+ source/drain ion implantation for forming the source/drain regions  34  and the other is a P+ implant for the substrate region  36 . The sequence of these two implants is not critical, but each will require a mask step. One mask step to protect the areas outside the source/drain regions  36  during the N+ implant, and the other to protect the source/drain regions and other areas during the P+ substrate implant of the substrate region  36 . The N+ region may be implanted using 5×10 14 /cm 2  to 5×10 15 /cm 2  of phosphorus ions or arsenic ions with an energy of between approximately 5 keV and 30 keV for phosphorous ions, or between approximately 10 keV and 60 keV for arsenic ions. The P+ ion implantation is 5×10 14 /cm 2  to 5×10 15 /cm 2  at between 1 keV and 10 keV for boron ions.  
         [0026]     In an alternative embodiment, a raised source/drain structure (not shown) may be used. This can be accomplished by forming sidewalls, for example using oxide or nitride, and removing all oxide on the silicon film not covered by silicon oxide or a gate stack formed by the gate layer, the nitride hard mask and the silicon oxide hard mask. A selective epitaxial growth of between approximately 20 nm and 50 nm of silicon is then grown over the exposed silicon film. The P+ and N+ ion implantation of steps discussed above may then be performed to form the source/drain regions and the substrate region.  
         [0027]     Another layer of oxide  38  is deposited to a thickness of between approximately 1.5 and 2.0 times higher than the distance from the top of the silicon film  22  to the top of the nitride hard mask  14 . The layer of oxide  38  is then polished, for example using CMP, until the top of the gate layer  18  is exposed as shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 .  
         [0028]     The remaining portions of the gate layer  18  are etched away along with the underlying regions of the gate oxide layer  20 . A layer of high-k dielectric material  40 , for example HfO 2 , ZrO 2 , HfAlO 2 , ZrAlO 2 , is deposited to a thickness of between approximately 3 nm and 50 nm, as shown in  FIGS. 12 and 13 . A ferroelectric material is then deposited and planarized, for example using CMP, stopping at, or just beyond, the high-k dielectric material  40  to form ferroelectric gates  42 . The ferroelectric material may be PGO, PZT, SBT, SBO, SBTO, SBTN, STO, BTO, BLT, LNO or YMnO 3 . Top electrodes  44 , which may be Pt or Ir for example, are then formed to serve as word lines. A layer of silicon dioxide is then deposited and the first metallization is completed to provide contacts  45  to the top electrodes  44 , the bit contacts  46  and the substrate contact  48 .  
         [0029]      FIG. 14  is top view of a MFIS ferroelectric memory array structure. The cross-sections  12 - 12  and  13 - 13  correspond to  FIGS. 12 and 13  respectively. The embodiment of the MFIS ferroelectric memory array structure shown is a 2×3 memory array. Each memory transistor, shown at  49 , has a drain  50  that serves as the bit output. Each drain  50  is isolated. The memory transistors along a given word line has a common source  52 . As shown in this embodiment the memory transistors along adjacent word lines share the same common source  52 . The channels of the memory transistors along a given word line are formed in a common silicon island that corresponds to the remaining portions of the silicon film  22 , and are separated from each other by P+ regions  30 , as shown in  FIG. 13 . The common silicon island includes a substrate region  36  that is also P+. At least one source contact  60  is provided. Word contacts  62 , and  64 , are connected to their respective top electrodes  44 . The substrate region  36  has a substrate contact  48 , while each drain has a bit contact  46 .  
         [0030]     The present MFIS ferroelectric memory array structure is capable of being block erased to a high threshold voltage. In an embodiment of the present method, the programming voltage V P  will be between approximately 3 V and 5 volts. To accomplish a block erase, a negative programming voltage is applied to a word line, for example by applying the negative programming voltage to word contact  62 , while holding all the bits in contact with the word line, the source and the substrate at the ground potential. The negative programming voltage −V P  is in the range of between approximately −3V and −5V. The erased block may be one word up to the entire memory array. Since the word line potential is negative with respect to the source, drain and substrate of each transistor channel, the channel is at the accumulation condition. Holes are accumulated at the surface of the channel of each transistor along the word line. Since the channel of each bit is connected together through the adjacent P+ isolation layer in the given work line, the channels of the transistors are kept at the same potential as that of the substrate region  36 , which is at the ground potential in this example. The potential difference between the gate and the channel of the ferroelectric transistors connected to a given word line is at the same potential −V P . The ferroelectric capacitors of these transistors pull positive charge to the top of each ferroelectric gate  42 . All the transistors within the selected word are now programmed to a high threshold voltage.  
         [0031]     Individual transistors can be selected and programmed to a low threshold voltage. The substrate lines are grounded. All unselected bit lines, unselected word lines and all the sources are biased at x times of the programming voltage, +V P . Where x is from 0.2 to 0.7. To selectively program a given bit, for example B 12 , which corresponds to the transistor at the intersection of word line (W 1 ) and bit line (B 2 ), to low threshold voltage the word line (W 1 ) is pulsed to +V P , while the bit line (B 2 ) voltage is set to ground. The memory transistor corresponding the B 12  is turned on. The voltage across the gate to channel of all un-selected memory transistor is no higher than (1−x)V P . Therefore, their threshold voltage is not affected by this programming operation. Multiple bits in the given word may be programmed to the low threshold voltage at the same time. Therefore it is possible to perform programming on a word basis.  
         [0032]     Although the gate voltage of all the other transistors along W 1  is at +V P , the substrate is at ground potential while their source voltages and drain voltages are maintained at xV P . The channel of these unselected transistors is depleted. The voltage difference between the gate and channel of these unselected transistors is much lower than the V P . Therefore, the threshold voltage of these unselected transistors is not altered by the selective programming operation.  
         [0033]     As to the transistors that share the same bit line as the selected bit, their bit lines and word lines voltage is (1−x)V P , so they are off and their channels are depleted. Therefore, the threshold of these unselected transistors is not affected by the selective programming operation.  
         [0034]     The terms of relative position, such as overlying, underlying, beneath are for ease of description only with reference to the orientation of the provided figures, as the actual orientation during, and subsequent to, processing is purely arbitrary.  
         [0035]     Although embodiments, including certain preferred embodiments, have been discussed above, the coverage is not limited to any specific embodiment. Rather, the claims shall determine the scope of the invention.