Patent ID: 8097300

Claim:
A method for forming a mixed rare earth oxynitride or mixed rare earth aluminum oxynitride film, comprising: disposing a substrate in a process chamber; and exposing the substrate to a gas pulse sequence to deposit a mixed rare earth oxynitride film or a mixed rare earth aluminum oxynitride film with a desired thickness, wherein the gas pulse sequence includes, in any order: a) sequentially first, exposing the substrate to a gas pulse comprising a first rare earth precursor, and second, exposing the substrate to a gas pulse comprising an oxygen-containing gas, a nitrogen-containing gas, or an oxygen and nitrogen-containing gas; b) sequentially first, exposing the substrate to a gas pulse comprising a second rare earth precursor, and second, exposing the substrate to a gas pulse comprising the oxygen-, nitrogen- or oxygen and nitrogen-containing gas, wherein the first and second rare earth precursors contain different rare earth metal elements of differing and mismatched atomic sizes; and c) optionally, sequentially first, exposing the substrate to a gas pulse containing an aluminum precursor and second, exposing the substrate to a gas pulse containing the oxygen-, nitrogen- or oxygen and nitrogen-containing gas, wherein each of a), b) and optionally c) are optionally repeated a number of times, wherein the gas pulse sequence including a), b) and optionally c) is optionally repeated, in any order, a number of times in order to achieve the desired thickness, and wherein the different rare earth metal elements are in solid solution in the mixed rare earth oxynitride or mixed rare earth aluminum oxynitride film, and wherein the mixed rare earth oxynitride or mixed rare earth aluminum oxynitride film has a dielectric constant that is greater than the dielectric constant of an oxynitride or aluminum oxynitride film having only one of the different rare earth metal elements present in the mixed rare earth oxynitride or mixed rare earth aluminum oxynitride film.