Patent Document

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 10/789,981, filed Mar. 2, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,963,101, issued Nov. 8, 2005, which is a divisional of application Ser. No. 10/229,351, filed Aug. 28, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,713,807, issued Mar. 30, 2004, which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/229,320 filed Jan. 13, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,462,371, issued Oct. 8, 2002, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/109,925, filed Nov. 24, 1998. This application is also related to U.S. Pat. No. 6,162,737, issued on Dec. 19, 2000. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention pertains to films comprising silicon and oxygen that are doped with carbon and the use of the films in integrated circuit technology, such as capacitor constructions, DRAM constructions, semiconductive material assemblies, etching processes, and methods for forming capacitors, DRAMS and semiconductive material assemblies. 
     Modern semiconductor device fabrication processes frequently use selective etching conditions that will etch one material more rapidly than another. The material that is etched more rapidly can be referred to as a sacrificial material, and the material that is etched less rapidly can be referred to as a protective or etch stop material. Selective etching can be used in processes in which it is desired to protect a portion of a semiconductor wafer from etching conditions while etching through another portion of the wafer. Exemplary selective etching conditions are dry etch conditions that are selective for etching silicon oxide relative to silicon nitride, including those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,344, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     Many prior art selective etching methods generally have poor selectivities, such that there is a constant risk that the protective material will be etched away entirely during the etching of the sacrificial material. The selectivity for a given selective etching method is highly dependent on numerous factors, such as the composition of the film and the etching conditions. It would be desirable to develop alternative methods of selective etching having better selectivities under comparable conditions. 
     A possible mechanism by which selectivity can occur is through selective polymer formation on the protective material during etching of the protective material and the sacrificial material. For instance, etching of silicon oxide and silicon nitride under conditions such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,344 can create a carbonaceous polymer on the silicon nitride which protects the silicon nitride during etching of the silicon oxide. The carbon contained in the carbonaceous polymer can originate from, for example, etchant materials, such as gas, liquid or plasma materials, including, for example, CH 2 F 2  and CHF 3 . When silicon oxide, such as borophosphosilicate glass (also referred to throughout the specification as BPSG), is selectively etched relative to silicon nitride, the carbon will frequently originate at least in part from etching of the BPSG. Thus, less selectivity is obtained when less BPSG is etched relative to an amount of silicon nitride exposed to the etching conditions. Accordingly, thin layers of BPSG can be more difficult to etch than thick layers. Many selective etching methods are not effective for selectively etching BPSG relative to silicon nitride when the BPSG layers have thicknesses of less than or equal to about 1.3 microns. 
     An exemplary application of selective etching is a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) forming process. Referring to  FIG. 1 , a DRAM construction is illustrated with respect to semiconductive wafer fragment  10 . Semiconductive wafer fragment  10  comprises a substrate  12 , which can be, for example, a monocrystalline wafer lightly doped with a p-type background dopant. The term “semiconductive wafer fragment” refers to any construction comprising semiconductive materials, including, for example, bulk semiconductive materials, such as semiconductive wafers (either alone or in assemblies comprising other materials thereon) and semiconductive material layers (either alone or in assemblies comprising other materials). The term “substrate” refers to any supporting structure, including, for example, the semiconductive wafer fragments described above. 
     Field oxide regions  15  overlay the substrate  12 , and node locations  14 ,  16  are between the field oxide regions  15 . The node locations  14 ,  16  contain diffusion regions conductively doped with a conductivity-enhancing dopant. 
     Wordlines  20  overlay the substrate  12 . The wordlines  20  comprise a gate oxide layer  24  and a conductive layer  26 . The gate oxide layer  24  and conductive layer  26  may also be referred to as a conductive gate. The gate oxide layer  24  can comprise, for example, silicon dioxide. The conductive layer  26  can comprise, for example, conductively doped polysilicon capped with a metal silicide, such as, for example, tungsten silicide or titanium silicide. The wordlines  20  have opposing sidewall edges and sidewall spacers  28  (referred to herein as a “spacer” or “spacers”) that extend along the sidewall edges. The spacers  28  can comprise, for example, silicon oxide or silicon nitride. An etch stop layer  32  extends over the wordlines  20 . The etch stop layer  32  can comprise, for example, silicon nitride. Although not shown, an insulative layer can be placed between the etch stop layer  32  and the conductive layer  26 . The insulative layer can comprise, for example, silicon oxide or silicon nitride. 
     An insulative layer  34  is provided over the substrate  12  and over the wordlines  20 . The insulative layer  34  can comprise, for example, BPSG. 
     Capacitor constructions  36  extend through the insulative layer  34  to contact the node locations  14 . The capacitor constructions  36  comprise a storage node or first electrode  40 , a dielectric layer  42 , and a second electrode  44 . The storage node  40  and second electrode  44  can comprise, for example, conductively doped silicon such as a conductively doped polysilicon. The dielectric layer  42  can comprise, for example, silicon dioxide and/or silicon nitride. Although all the layers  40 ,  42 ,  44  are shown extending within openings in the insulative layer  34 , other capacitor constructions can be used where some or none of the storage node, dielectric and second electrode layers extend within the opening. 
     A bit line contact  46  also extends through the insulative layer  34  and contacts a node location  16 . The bit line contact  46  is in gated electrical connection with the capacitor construction  36  through the wordline  20 . The bit line contact  46  can comprise, for example, tungsten, titanium and/or titanium nitride. Although not shown, a diffusion barrier layer, such as, for example, titanium nitride, can be formed between the bit line contact  46  and the diffusion region of the node location  16 . 
     A second insulative layer  48  extends over the capacitor constructions  36  and electrically isolates the second electrode  44  from the bit line contact  46 . The second insulative layer  48  can comprise, for example, silicon dioxide, BPSG or silicon nitride, and can be the same as or different from the first insulative layer  34 . 
     A bit line  50  extends over the second insulative layer  48  and is in electrical connection with the bit line contact  46 . Accordingly, the bit line contact  46  electrically connects the bit line  50  to the node location  16 . The bit line  50  may comprise, for example, aluminum, copper or an alloy of aluminum and copper. 
     A method of forming the DRAM construction of  FIG. 1  is described with reference to  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  FIG. 2  illustrates a semiconductive wafer fragment  10  at a preliminary processing step. The etch stop layer  32  extends over the wordlines  20 , and over the node locations  14 ,  16 . The insulative layer  34  extends over the etch stop layer  32 , and a patterned photoresist masking layer  60  is provided over the insulative layer  34 . The patterned photoresist masking layer  60  defines an opening  62  which is to be extended to the node location  16  for ultimate formation of the bit line contact  46  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) therein. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , the opening  62  is extended to the etch stop layer  32 . The etch used to extend the opening  62  is preferably selective for the material of the insulative layer  34  relative to that of the etch stop layer  32 . For instance, if the insulative layer  34  comprises BPSG and the etch stop layer  32  comprises nitride, the etch can be a fluorocarbon, such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,344. 
     After selectively etching to the etch stop layer  32 , subsequent anisotropic etching of the etch stop layer  32  can occur to extend the opening  62  to the node location  16 . Such extended opening can also be referred to as a self-aligned contact etch, referring to the opening being aligned with the sidewall edges of the wordlines  20 . Preferred self-aligned contact etches are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,344. 
     After the opening  62  is extended to the node location  16 , the patterned photoresist masking layer  60  (shown in  FIG. 2  ) can be removed, and subsequent processing used for forming the bit line contact  46  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) within the opening  62 . Also, similar etching described above to form the opening  62  for the bit line contact  46  can be used to form openings to the node locations  14  for formation of the capacitor constructions  36  therein. In the exemplified fabrication process, the opening  62  for the bit line contact  46  is formed prior to forming openings for the capacitor constructions  36  (shown in  FIG. 1 ). However, other fabrication processes are known in the art wherein the openings for the capacitor constructions are formed either before, or simultaneously with, formation of the opening for the bit line contact. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an idealized selective etch, where the etch stops substantially entirely upon reaching the etch stop layer  32 . However, as discussed above, prior art etching processes are generally not much more selective for sacrificial materials (the material of insulative layer  34 ) than for protective materials (the material of etch stop layer  32 ). Accordingly, the selective etches do not generally stop substantially entirely upon reaching the etch stop layer  32 , but rather continue at a slower rate upon reaching the etch stop layer  32 . 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a prior art problem that can occur as a result of the continued etching of the etch stop layer  32 . Specifically, the etch stop layer  32  can become thinned to an extent that the spacers  28  are exposed to the etching conditions. Such exposure can lead to etching through the spacers  28  to expose the conductive layer  26 . In a bad scenario, the conductive layer  26  is shorted to the bit line contact  46  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) when the conductive material of the bit line contact  46  is formed within the opening  62 . Also, the thinning of the etch stop layer  32  can lead to unpredictability during a subsequent etch of the etch stop layer  32  to expose the node location  16 . It is then unknown how long to continue a subsequent etch. If the etch continues for too long, the etch can undesirably penetrate into the substrate  12 , and possibly through the diffusion region at the node location  16 . 
     As can be seen from the above discussion, there is a need in the art for improving the selectivity of the etching process in integrated circuit applications. The present invention is directed to these, as well as other, important ends. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention describes semiconductive assemblies comprising semiconductive substrates, and layers over the semiconductive substrates, wherein the layers comprise silicon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon and, optionally, nitrogen. The present invention also describes methods for forming semiconductive assemblies. 
     The present invention also describes wordline assemblies comprising conductive gates having sidewalls and spacers next to the sidewalls of the conductive gates, wherein the spacers comprise silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and, optionally, nitrogen. The wordline assemblies can further comprise cap layers overlying the conductive gates. The present invention also describes methods for forming wordline assemblies. 
     In another embodiment, the present invention describes capacitor assemblies comprising a storage node extending within an insulative layer, wherein the storage node is next to a layer comprising silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and, optionally, nitrogen; a second electrode proximate the storage node; and a dielectric layer between the storage node and the second electrode. The present invention also describes methods for forming capacitor assemblies. 
     In yet another embodiment, the present invention describes DRAMs comprising a substrate, a wordline over the substrate, wherein the wordline has a sidewall; a first node and a second node proximate the wordline, wherein the first node is in gated electrical connection with the second node via the wordline; a spacer next to the sidewall of the wordline, wherein the spacer comprises silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and, optionally, nitrogen; an insulative layer over the spacer, the wordline, the first node and the second node; a capacitor assembly in electrical connection with the first node; and a bit line contact in electrical connection with the second node. The DRAMs can further comprise a cap layer overlying the wordline. The present invention also describes methods for forming DRAMs. 
     The present invention also describes assemblies comprising a substrate; a layer comprising silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and, optionally, nitrogen; and a photoresist masking layer. The present invention also describes methods for forming such assemblies. 
     In yet another embodiment, the present invention describes methods for reducing the etch rate of a film comprising doping a film with 2% to about 20% by weight carbon to reduce the etch rate of the film, wherein the film comprises silicon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and, optionally, nitrogen. In another embodiment, the present invention describes etching methods comprising doping a first film with about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, wherein the first film comprises silicon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and, optionally, nitrogen; and selectively etching a second film comprising silicon relative to the first film. 
     These and other embodiments of the present invention are described in more detail below. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a prior art semiconductive wafer fragment comprising a DRAM assembly. 
         FIG. 2  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a semiconductive wafer fragment at a preliminary processing step in forming the DRAM assembly of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is an idealized view of a semiconductive wafer fragment at a processing step subsequent to that shown in  FIG. 2  and prior to that shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a view of a semiconductive wafer fragment at a processing step subsequent to that shown in  FIG. 2  and prior to that shown in  FIG. 1  where the results of the etch are not ideal. 
         FIG. 5  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a semiconductive wafer fragment processed according to the methods of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a semiconductive wafer fragment at a processing step subsequent to that of  FIG. 5 . 
         FIG. 7  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a semiconductive wafer fragment at a processing step subsequent to that of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 8  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a semiconductive wafer fragment processed according to the methods of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a semiconductive wafer fragment at a processing step subsequent to that of  FIG. 8 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As used throughout the disclosure, the following terms have the following meanings: BPSG refers to borophosphosilicate glass; DRAM refers to dynamic random access memory; BTBAS refers to bis(tertiary butyl amino)silane; TEOS refers to tetraethylorthosilicate; and SiC refers to silicon carbide. 
     The present invention describes methods to decrease the etch rate of films comprising silicon and oxygen by doping the films with carbon. For example, the present invention describes methods to decrease the etch rate of films comprising silicon and oxygen as they are subjected to an anisotropic dry etch process by adding carbon to the film. The selectivity of the etch of a first material relative to a second material can be increased by adding carbon to the second material. 
     As described in co-pending application Ser. No. 09/175,051, filed Oct. 19, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,802, which issued Jun. 26, 2001 (the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety), the incorporation of carbon into a film can greatly reduce the etch rate of the film using an otherwise identical selective etch process. Without intending to be bound by any theory of the invention, it is believed that carbon increases the etch process selectivity by increasing the activation energy required by the etching process. An advantage of the relatively high activation energy films of the present invention, relative to the lower activation energy films of the prior art, is that lower activation energy films generally require more selective processes than do higher activation energy films. As processing conditions become more highly selective, the processing conditions tend to become less stable. Accordingly, since the carbon can allow for less selective processing conditions to be used to accomplish similar results as obtained in the prior art using more highly selective processing conditions, the present invention can allow for more robust processing conditions to be used than can be used by the prior art. Also, the present invention can increase a “process window,” to further increase stability of the processing conditions. In other words, the carbon incorporation of the present invention can enable a selective process to occur across a broader range of conditions than such process would occur using prior art methods. 
     Another advantage of the increased etch selectivity that can be accomplished by the methods of the present invention is that the etch stop layers can be thinner. Prior art etch stop layers typically have a thickness of at least 2,000 angstroms. One reason for this thickness is to compensate for over-etching of the etch stop layer that can occur in a selective etch. The enhanced selectivity that can be accomplished by the methods of the present invention can allow for the etch stop layer to be less than or equal to about 500 angstroms, without increasing the risk of over-etching. Reducing the thickness of the etch stop layer provides additional space for capacitor constructions in a DRAM assembly, which allows for more charge to be stored over a given area of semiconductive wafer than was achievable by the prior art methods. 
     Yet another unexpected advantage of the present invention is that doping a film comprising silicon and oxygen with carbon results in a film having a lower dielectric constant. The dielectric constant of the film of the present invention can be from about 4 to about 7, preferably greater than or equal to about 5 to less than or equal to about 6. The lower dielectric constant achieved by the present invention provides improved capacitive characteristics for semiconductive materials, capacitors and DRAMs. 
     The methods of the present invention are described with reference to  FIGS. 5-9 . Referring to  FIG. 5 , a semiconductive wafer fragment  100  comprises a substrate  112  having wordlines  120  formed thereover. Spacers  128  extend along the sidewalls of the wordlines  120 . The substrate  112 , wordlines  120  and spacers  128  can comprise constructions identical to those discussed above for the prior art. Node locations  114 ,  116  are provided between the wordlines  120  and can comprise constructions identical to those discussed above for the prior art. Although not shown, a cap layer can overlay the conductive layer  126  of the wordline  120 . Such a cap layer can comprise, for example, silicon oxide or silicon nitride, and can have the same or different composition as the spacers  128 . 
     An etch stop layer  132  is formed over the substrate  112  and over the wordlines  120 . The etch stop layer  132  of the present invention is a film formed by combining a silicon-comprising material with a carbon-comprising material and at least one oxidizing agent. Portions of the etch stop layer  132  extend along the spacers  128 . The etch stop layer  132  can be formed to a thickness of less than about 1500 angstroms, preferably less than or equal to about 500 angstroms. 
     The etch stop layer  132  can be formed by, for example, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of a silicon-comprising material in the presence of a carbon-comprising material and at least one oxidizing agent. Preferably, the silicon-comprising material is silicon nitride and/or silicon oxide. The silicon oxide can be, for example, silicon oxide or BPSG. Alternatively, the silicon-comprising material can be BTBAS. Preferably, the carbon-comprising material is TEOS and/or BTBAS, more preferably BTBAS. The carbon is preferably incorporated into the film in the form of silicon carbide (SiC). The oxidizing agent is preferably an oxide and/or an oxynitride, such as, for example, N 2 O, O 2  and/or O 3 . 
     The etch stop layer  132  can be deposited, for example, in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor having a pressure of about 50 mTorr to about 10 Torr, a temperature of about 400° C. to about 750° C., an SiH 4  flow rate of about 0 to about 500 sccm, an N 2 O flow rat of about 0 to about 1000 sccm, an O 2  flow rate of about 0 to about 1000 sccm, and a BTBAS flow rate of about 0 to about 500 sccm, to form an etch stop layer  132  having a composition as described below. 
     In another embodiment, carbon can be incorporated into the etch stop layer  132  by doping the etch stop layer  132  with carbon after deposition of the etch stop layer  132 . Doping can be conducted by methods known in the art, including, for example, ion implanting with a carbon-comprising material or vapor annealing with a carbon-comprising material. 
     In the present invention, the film comprises silicon, carbon and oxygen, and, optionally, nitrogen. The film can be an etch stop layer, a spacer, a cap layer and the like. In one embodiment, the film can comprise about 20% to about 65% by weight silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and about 0% to about 30% by weight nitrogen. 
     In another embodiment, the film can comprise about 20% to about 65% by weight silicon, about 5% to about 20% by weight carbon, preferably about 10% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5% to about 25% by weight oxygen, preferably about 10% to about 20% by weight oxygen, and about 0% to about 30% by weight nitrogen, preferably about 10% to about 30% by weight nitrogen. 
     In yet another embodiment, the film can comprise about 20% to about 65% by weight silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, preferably about 2% to about 10% by weight carbon, about 40% to about 75% by weight oxygen, preferably about 45% to about 65% by weight oxygen, more preferably about 50% to about 60% by weight oxygen, and from about 0% to about 15% by weight nitrogen, more preferably about 1% to about 10% by weight nitrogen. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , an insulative layer  134  is formed over the etch stop layer  132  and an opening  162  is etched into the insulative layer  134  to stop at the etch stop layer  132 . The insulative layer  134  can comprise, for example, BPSG. The opening  162  is defined by, for example, a patterned photoresist masking layer, as described in reference to  FIG. 2  above. The sides of the opening  162  are aligned with portions  118  of the etch stop layer  132  that extend along the spacers  128 . The insulative layer  134  and opening  162  can be formed by methods discussed in the background section of the specification. The carbon incorporated in the etch stop layer  132  can greatly increase the selectivity of the etch of the insulative layer  134  relative to the etch stop layer  132 . Such selectivity can decrease the risk of the prior art over-etch problems illustrated in  FIG. 4 . The decreased risk of over-etch problems accomplished by carbon incorporation in the etch stop layer  132  allows the etch stop layer  132  to be formed thinner than the etch stop layer  32  used in the prior art. Accordingly, there can be more space above the etch stop layer  132  for circuit constructions. Also, the incorporation of carbon in the etch stop layer  132  allows for etch selectivity to be obtained even if the insulative layer  134  is very thin before the etch. For example, the insulative layer  134  can be less than 1.3 microns thick before the etch and etch selectivity can still be obtained. Additionally, the incorporation of carbon in an etch stop layer that comprises silicon and oxygen provides an etch stop layer with a lower dielectric constant. 
     After the selective etch to expose the etch stop layer  132 , further processing can be used to extend the opening  162  to the node location  116 . Such further processing can include a silicon nitride etch, such as, for example, hot phosphoric acid. 
     Subsequently, a bit line contact similar to the bit line contact  46  of the prior art can be formed within the opening  162 . Also, further processing can be conducted to form capacitor constructions similar to the prior art to complete a DRAM assembly from the construction of  FIG. 6 . Such DRAM assembly is shown in  FIG. 7 , with components analogous to those of  FIG. 1  labeled with integers  100  units larger than the integers used in  FIG. 1 . The DRAM assembly of  FIG. 7  comprises capacitor constructions  136 , which comprise storage node layers  140 , dielectric layers  142  and second electrodes  144 . Capacitor constructions  136  can be larger than capacitor constructions  36  of  FIG. 1  even though the DRAM assembly of  FIG. 7  occupies the same amount of wafer space as the DRAM assembly of  FIG. 1  due to the increased area available by the etch stop layer  132  being thinner than the prior art etch stop layer  32 . 
     Another embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to  FIGS. 8 and 9 . Such embodiments comprise forming spacers doped with carbon to decrease the etch rate of the spacers relative to the overlying insulative layer. Referring to  FIG. 8 , a semiconductive wafer fragment:  200  comprises a substrate  212  and overlying wordlines  220 . Node locations  214 ,  216  are between the wordlines  220 . The substrate  212 , wordlines  220  and node locations  214 ,  216  can comprise constructions similar to those discussed with respect to the prior art. 
     The spacers  228  extend along the sidewalls of the wordlines  220 . The cap layer  230  overlays the conductive layer  226  of the wordlines  220 . The spacers  228  and cap layer  230  are a film formed by combining a silicon-comprising material with a carbon-comprising material and at least one oxidizing agent. Preferably the silicon comprising material is silicon nitride and/or silicon oxide. The silicon oxide can be, for example, silicon oxide or BPSG. Alternatively, the silicon-comprising material can be BTBAS. Preferably the carbon-comprising material is TEOS and/or BTBAS, more preferably BTBAS. The carbon is preferably incorporated into the film in the form of silicon carbide (SiC). The oxidizing agent is preferably an oxide and/or an oxynitride, such as, for example, N 2 O, O 2  and/or O 3 . 
     The spacers  228  and cap layer  230  can be formed, for example, by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) using the reaction conditions described above for the etch stop layer  132  of the present invention. 
     In another embodiment, carbon can be incorporated into the spacers  228  and/or cap layer  230  by doping the spacers  228  and/or cap layer  230  with carbon after deposition of the spacers  228  and/or cap layer  230 . Doping can be conducted by methods known in the art, including, for example, ion implanting with a carbon comprising material or vapor annealing with a carbon-comprising material. 
     In the present invention, the spacer and/or cap layer comprises silicon, carbon and oxygen, and, optionally, nitrogen. In one embodiment, the spacer and/or cap layer can comprise about 20% to about 65% by weight silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5% to about 75% by weight oxygen and about 0% to about 30% by weight nitrogen. 
     In another embodiment, the spacer and/or cap layer can comprise about 20% to about 65% by weight silicon, about 5% to about 20% by weight carbon, preferably about 10% to about 20% by weight carbon, about 5%, to about 25% by weight oxygen, preferably about 10% to about 20% by weight oxygen, and about 0% to about 30% by weight nitrogen, preferably about 10% to about 30% by weight nitrogen. 
     In yet another embodiment, the spacer and/or cap layer can comprise about 20% to about 65% by weight silicon, about 2% to about 20% by weight carbon, preferably about 2% to about 10% by weight carbon, about 40% to about 75% by weight oxygen, preferably about 45% to about 65% by weight oxygen, more preferably about 50% to about 60% by weight oxygen, and from about 0% to about 15% by weight nitrogen, more preferably about 1% to about 10% by weight nitrogen. 
     An insulative layer  234  is formed over the wordlines  220  and over the spacers  228  and cap layer  230 . The insulative layer  234  can comprise, for example, BPSG. A difference between the construction of  FIG. 8  and the prior art constructions is that the construction of  FIG. 8  does not have an etch stop layer provided over the wordlines  220 . However, in an alternative embodiment, an etch stop layer can be provided over the spacer and/or cap layer. 
     An opening  262  is etched through insulative layer  234  and to the substrate  212 . The opening is defined by, for example, a patterned photoresist masking layer, as described above in reference to  FIG. 2 . The opening  262  is aligned relative to the spacer  228  proximate the substrate  212 . In one embodiment, the insulative layer  234  comprises BPSG and the spacers  228  and cap layer  230  comprise silicon nitride. In this aspect of the invention, a first silicon oxide layer (BPSG insulative layer  234 ) is etched selectively relative to a second silicon nitride layer (the layer of one or more of the spacers  228  and/or cap layer  230 ) by virtue of the carbon that has been incorporated/doped into the second layer that comprises silicon and oxygen. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , semiconductive wafer fragment  210  can be processed according to methods similar to those described above with reference to  FIG. 1  to produce a DRAM assembly. The DRAM assembly of  FIG. 9  is labeled similarly to that of  FIG. 1  with components analogous to those of  FIG. 1  labeled with integers  200  units larger than the integers used in  FIG. 1 . 
     The DRAM assembly of  FIG. 9  comprises capacitors, which can be larger than the capacitors of  FIG. 1 , even though the DRAM assembly of  FIG. 9  occupies the same amount of space as the DRAM assembly of  FIG. 1 , due to the elimination of the etch stop layer. 
     Even if an etch stop layer is present, the spacers  228  can be thinner than the prior art spacers  28  to provide additional room for capacitor constructions. Specifically, a function of the prior art spacers  28  can be to provide a barrier in the event that etch stop layer  32  is etched through during processing to form opening  62 . As the spacers  228  of the present invention are more resistant to etching than the prior art spacers  28 , the spacers  228  can be formed thinner than prior art spacers  28  and still form an effective barrier against etch-through. For instance, prior art spacers  28  would typically be formed to a thickness of at least about 900 angstroms (the “thickness” being defined as an amount by which the spacers extend outwardly or horizontally from the sidewalls of the wordlines). The spacers  228  and/or cap layer  230  of the present invention can be formed to a thickness of less than or equal to about 500 angstroms, preferably less than or equal to about 100 angstroms. The thinner spacers  228  can provide additional room for capacitor construction relative to the room available for capacitor construction in the prior art. Additionally, the incorporation of carbon in the films that comprise silicon and oxygen provides spacers and cap layers with a lower dielectric constant. 
     One skilled in the art will appreciate that the embodiments of the present invention shown in  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 8  can both be used in the same semiconductive assembly. Alternatively, the etch stop layer, spacers and/or cap layer can all be used independently in a semiconductive assembly. 
     The films of the present invention can also be used as an anti-reflective coating in integrated circuit technology. As the silicon content of a film is increased, the absorption of the film becomes more pronounced. Using the film of the present invention prior to a photoresist masking layer would reduce the compound reflectivity of the underlying layers. Excess silicon is easily incorporated into these films by simple precursor flow rate changes. Photoresist masking layers must generally be optimized by thickness. 
     EXAMPLES 
     The following examples are presented for purposes of elucidation and not limitation. The examples are not intended, nor are they to be construed, as limiting the scope of the disclosure or claims. 
     Example 1 
     An etch-resistant film was prepared in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor under the following conditions: a pressure of about 500 mTorr, a temperature of about 575° C., an N 2 O flow rate of about 50 sccm, an O 2  flow rate of about 50 sccm, and a BTBAS flow rate of about 125 sccm. The resulting film had a stoichiometric composition of SiO 1.4 N 0.2 C 0.1 , and a thickness of about 1040 angstroms. 
     Example 2 
     An etch-resistant film was prepared in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor under the following conditions: a pressure of about 500 mTorr, a temperature of about 575° C., an N 2 O flow rate of about 150 sccm, and a BTBAS flow rate of about 125 sccm. The resulting film had a stoichiometric composition of SiO 1.3 N 0.5 C 0.3 , and a thickness of about 630 angstroms. 
     Although the invention has been set forth in detail and with reference to examples, one skilled in the art will appreciate that changes and modifications can be made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Technology Category: 4