Patent Document

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation of U.S. Application for Patent Ser. No. 13/454,570 filed Apr. 24, 2012, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     SUMMARY 
       [0002]    An embodiment of a transistor includes a body and a semiconductor region configured to stress a portion (e.g., the channel) of the body. 
         [0003]    In an embodiment, the semiconductor region may be configured to stress a channel of the transistor to increase the mobility of carriers in the channel, and thus to reduce the “on” resistance of the transistor. Reducing a transistor&#39;s “on” resistance may increase the speed at which a circuit may switch the transistor, and thus may make the transistor suitable for high-speed applications such as high-speed logic circuits. Furthermore, reducing a transistor&#39;s “on” resistance may decrease the power that the transistor consumes while conducting a current, and thus may make the transistor suitable for current-conducting applications such as a switching transistor in a switching power supply. 
         [0004]    In a further embodiment, the substrate, source/drain regions, or both the substrate and source/drain regions of a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) P-type field-effect transistor (PFET) may be doped with a stress-inducing dopant such as germanium (Ge) so that the region(s) exert(s) a compressive stress on the channel to increase the mobility of holes in the channel. Or, the substrate, source/drain regions, or both the substrate and source/drain regions of a SOI N-type field-effect transistor (NFET) may be doped with a stress-inducing dopant such as carbon (C) so that the region(s) exert(s) a tensile stress on the channel to increase the mobility of electrons in the channel. 
         [0005]    Furthermore, the stress-generating semiconductor region may be implanted with a stress-inducing dopant using the same mask that is used for other implants into the semiconductor region so that no additional lithography steps are needed to form a stressed transistor body. 
         [0006]    Similarly, the stress-generating semiconductor region may be annealed in the same step during which other dopants into the region are annealed. 
         [0007]    Alternatively, the stress-generating semiconductor region may be formed (e.g., grown or deposited) to include a stress-inducing dopant so that no additional implant of a stress-inducting dopant into the semiconductor region is needed. For example, such a semiconductor region may be grown or deposited as silicon germanium (SiGe) or silicon carbide (SiC). 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]    Unless otherwise noted, like numbers reference like components throughout the following drawings. 
           [0009]      FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of an integrated-circuit portion that includes an N-type field-effect transistor (NFET) and a P-type field-effect transistor (PFET) with stressed bodies according to an embodiment. 
           [0010]      FIGS. 2-11  are cross-sectional views of the integrated-circuit portion of  FIG. 1  during respective fabrication steps of the NFET and PFET according to an embodiment. 
           [0011]      FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view of an integrated-circuit portion that includes an NFET and a PFET with stressed bodies according to another embodiment. 
           [0012]      FIG. 13  is a diagram of a system that incorporates at least one of the integrated circuits of  FIGS. 1 and 12  according to an embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0013]    The following discussion is presented to enable a person skilled in the art to make and use the subject matter disclosed herein. The general principles described herein may be applied to embodiments and applications other than those detailed above without departing from the spirit and scope of the present detailed description. The present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features disclosed or suggested herein. 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of a portion  10  of an embodiment of an integrated circuit  12 , the portion including an NFET  14  and a PFET  16  with stressed bodies  18  and  20 , respectively; in an embodiment, the NFET and PFET are ultra-thin-body-on-buried-oxide (UTBB) transistors. Because the bodies  18  and  20  are stressed, the carrier mobilities in the channels formed in these bodies may be increased. And the increased carrier mobilities may decrease the “on” resistances of the NFET  14  and PFET  16  so that these transistors may have higher switching speeds and lower power losses than comparable transistors with unstressed bodies. Therefore, the NFET  14  and PFET  16  may be suitable for high-speed applications such as high-speed logic, or for applications, such as in switching power supplies, where a transistor may conduct a substantial current while “on.” Furthermore, as discussed below, the NFET  14  and PFET  16  may be fabricated without increasing the number of masks as compared to comparable transistors with unstressed bodies. Moreover, as discussed below, the NFET  14  and PFET  16  may be fabricated without increasing the number of fabrication steps as compared to comparable transistors with unstressed bodies. 
         [0015]    Still referring to  FIG. 1 , the integrated circuit  12  may be any type of integrated circuit including a memory, analog circuit, or controller such as a microcontroller or microprocessor. Furthermore, the integrated circuit  12  may include more than one NFET  14  or more than one PFET  16 , an NFET  14  but not a PFET  16  or vice-versa, other types of transistors such as bipolar transistors and other types of FETs, and types of components and devices other than transistors. 
         [0016]    The integrated-circuit portion  10  includes trench-isolation regions  22 , which electrically isolate the NFET  14  and the PFET  16  from each other and from other surrounding transistors or devices (omitted from  FIG. 1 ). 
         [0017]    The NFET  14  includes a substrate  24 , a stress-inducing region  26  disposed in the substrate, a buried oxide  28  disposed over the stress-inducting region, the P-type body  18  disposed over the buried oxide, N-type source/drain regions  32  and  34  disposed over the buried oxide and adjacent to the body, a gate insulator  36  disposed over the body, a gate  38  disposed over the gate insulator, and sidewall spacers  40 , which electrically isolate the gate from the source-drain regions. 
         [0018]    The substrate  24  may include a conventional conductivity dopant to make the substrate N-type or P-type as desired, and may include a ground-plane dopant to improve the short-channel effect, and to adjust the threshold, of the NFET  14 . The ground-plane dopant may improve the short-channel effect by directing electric fields from the source/drain regions  32  and  34  toward the substrate  24 , instead of across the channel toward each other, to uncouple electrically the source/drain regions from one another. For example, to improve the short-channel effect, and to increase the threshold voltage, of the NFET  14 , one may implant into the substrate  24  an acceptor-type dopant such as Indium (In). Conversely, to improve the short-channel effect, and to decrease the threshold voltage, of the NFET  14 , one may implant into the substrate  24  a donor-type dopant such as arsenic (As). 
         [0019]    The stress-inducing region  26  increases the tensile stress in the substrate  24 , and thus increases the tensile stress, and hence the carrier mobility (here the electron mobility), in the channel formed in the body  18  when a suitable channel-forming voltage is applied to the gate  38 ; that is, at least a portion of the increased tensile stress in the substrate is transferred to the channel through the buried oxide layer  28 . In an embodiment, a stress-inducing dopant, such as carbon (C), is disposed within the stress-inducing region  26  to increase the tensile stress in the substrate  24 , where the level of tensile stress is proportional to the concentration of the stress-inducing dopant in the stress-inducing region. For example, a concentration of C atoms in the range of approximately 0-3% of the total number of atoms in the stress-inducing region  26  may cause the substrate  24  to impart a suitable tensile stress to the channel. And as discussed below in conjunction with  FIG. 3 , if one implants the stress-inducing dopant into the substrate  24  to form the stress-inducing region  26 , he/she may do so using the same mask that is used for implanting the ground-plane dopant such that no additional lithographic step is needed as compared to the fabrication of an NFET transistor with no stress-inducing dopant implanted into its substrate. 
         [0020]    The buried oxide  28  may be formed in a conventional manner to have any suitable thickness, for example, in approximately the range of 10-25 nanometers (nm). 
         [0021]    The N-type source/drain regions  32  and  34  may also increase the tensile stress on, and thus the carrier mobility (here the electron mobility) in, of the channel formed in the body  18 . 
         [0022]    The source/drain regions  32  and  34  may include a conventional donor dopant, such as As, that gives the source/drain regions their N-type conductivities. 
         [0023]    Furthermore, the source/drain regions  32  and  34  may include a stress-inducing dopant that increases the tensile stress of the source/drain regions, which transfer at least a portion of this increased tensile stress to the body  18  so as to increase the carrier mobility (here the electron mobility) of the channel; as discussed above, the level of tensile stress in the source/drain regions  32  and  34  is proportional to the concentration of the stress-inducting dopant in the source/drain regions. In an embodiment, a stress-inducting dopant, such as carbon (C), is disposed in the source/drain regions  32  and  34 . For example, a concentration of C atoms in a range of approximately 0-3% of the total number of atoms in each source/drain region  32  and  34  may cause the source/drain regions to impart a suitable tensile stress to the channel. The tensile stress that the source/drain regions  32  and  34  impart to the channel is in addition to the tensile stress imparted by the stress-inducing region  26  of the substrate  24 . Moreover, the stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the source/drain regions  32  and  34  may be less than the stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the stress-inducing region  26  for at least two reasons: 1) because the source/drain regions are closer to the body  18  than is the stress-inducing region (which is separated from the body by the buried oxide  28 ), a smaller stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the source/drain regions is needed to impart a given level of tensile stress to the channel as compared to the stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the stress-inducing region; and 2) to limit the diffusing of the stress-inducing dopant from the source/drain regions into the body region because stress-inducing dopant in the body region may degrade the performance of the NFET  14 . As discussed below in conjunction with  FIG. 9 , if one implants the stress-inducing dopant into the source/drain regions  32  and  34 , then he/she may do so using the same mask that is used for implanting the conductivity dopant such that no additional lithographic step is needed as compared to an NFET transistor with no stress-inducing dopant implanted into its source/drain regions. 
         [0024]    The PFET  16  includes a substrate  44 , a stress-inducing region  46  disposed in the substrate, a buried oxide  48  disposed over the stress-inducting layer, the N-type body  20  disposed over the buried oxide, P-type source/drain regions  52  and  54  disposed over the buried oxide and adjacent to the body, a gate insulator  56  disposed over the body, a gate  58  disposed over the gate insulator, and sidewall spacers  60 , which electrically isolate the gate from the source-drain regions. 
         [0025]    The substrate  44  may include a conventional ground-plane dopant to improve the short-channel effect, and to adjust the threshold, of the PFET  16 . The ground-plane dopant may improve the short-channel effect by directing electric fields from the source/drain regions  52  and  54  toward the substrate  44 , instead of across the channel toward each other, to uncouple electrically the source/drain regions from one another. For example, to improve the short-channel effect, and to increase the threshold voltage, of the PFET  16 , one may dispose in the substrate  44  a donor-type dopant such as As. Conversely, to improve the short-channel effect, and to decrease the threshold voltage, of the PFET  16 , one may dispose in the substrate  44  an acceptor-type dopant such as In. 
         [0026]    The stress-inducing region  46  increases the compressive stress in the substrate  44 , and thus increases the compressive stress, and hence the carrier mobility (here the hole mobility), in the channel formed in the body  20  when a suitable channel-forming voltage is applied to the gate  58 ; that is, at least a portion of the increased compressive stress in the substrate is transferred to the channel through the buried oxide layer  48 . In an embodiment, a stress-inducing dopant, such as germanium (Ge), is disposed in the stress-inducing region  46  to increase the compressive stress in the substrate  44 , where the level of compressive stress is proportional to the concentration of the stress-inducing dopant in the stress-inducing layer. For example, a concentration of Ge atoms in an approximate range of 0-30% of the total number of atoms in the stress-inducing region  46  may cause the substrate  44  to impart a suitable compressive stress to the channel—the magnitude of compressive stress generated by a given concentration of Ge is approximately one tenth of the magnitude of the tensile stress generated by the same concentration of C. And as discussed below in conjunction with  FIG. 4 , if one implants the stress-inducing dopant into the substrate  44  to form the stress-inducing region  46 , then he/she may do so using the same mask that is used for implanting the ground-plane dopant such that no additional lithographic step is needed as compared to the fabrication of a PFET transistor with no stress-inducing dopant in its substrate. 
         [0027]    The buried oxide  48  may be conventionally formed to have any suitable thickness, for example, in the approximate range of 10-25 nm. 
         [0028]    The P-type source/drain regions  52  and  54  may also increase the compressive stress, and thus the carrier mobility (here the hole mobility), of the channel formed in the body  20 . 
         [0029]    The source/drain regions  52  and  54  may conventionally include an acceptor dopant, such as Phosphorous (P), that gives the source/drain regions their P-type conductivities. 
         [0030]    Furthermore, the source/drain regions  52  and  54  may include a stress-inducing dopant that increases the compressive stress of the source/drain regions, which transfer at least a portion of this increased compressive stress to the body  20  so as to increase the carrier mobility (here the hole mobility) of the channel; as discussed above, the level of compressive stress in the source/drain regions  52  and  54  is proportional to the concentration of the stress-inducting dopant in the source/drain regions. In an embodiment, a stress-inducting dopant, such as Ge, is disposed in the source/drain regions  52  and  54 . For example, a concentration of Ge atoms in an approximate range of 0-30% of the total number of atoms in each source/drain region  52  and  54  may cause the source/drain regions to impart a suitable compressive stress to the channel. The compressive stress that the source/drain regions  52  and  54  impart to the channel is in addition to the compressive stress that the stress-inducing region  26  of the substrate  44  imparts to the channel. Moreover, the stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the source/drain regions  52  and  54  may be less than the stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the stress-inducing region  46  for at least two reasons: 1) because the source/drain regions are closer to the body  20  than is the stress-inducing region (which is separated from the body by the buried oxide  48 ), a smaller stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the source/drain regions is needed to impart a given level of compressive stress to the channel as compared to the stress-inducing-dopant concentration in the stress-inducing region; and 2) to limit the diffusing of the stress-inducing dopant from the source/drain regions into the body region because stress-inducing dopant in the body may degrade the performance of the PFET  16 . As discussed below in conjunction with  FIG. 10 , if one implants the stress-inducing dopant into the source/drain regions  52  and  54 , then he/she may do this using the same mask that is used for implanting the conductivity dopant such that no additional lithographic step is needed as compared to a PFET transistor with no stress-inducing dopant implanted into its source/drain regions. 
         [0031]    Although omitted from  FIG. 1  for brevity, other conventional features, such as source/drain and gate silicides and contacts, as well as one or more metal, insulator, or passivation layers, may be disposed above or below the NFET  14  and PFET  16 . 
         [0032]    Still referring to  FIG. 1 , alternate embodiments are contemplated. For example, in the NFET  14 , a stress-inducing dopant may be omitted from any one or two of the stress-inducing layer  26 , source/drain region  32 , and source/drain region  34 ; similarly, in the PFET  16 , a stress-inducing dopant may be omitted from any one or two of the stress-inducing layer  46 , source/drain region  52 , and source/drain region  54 . Furthermore, in the NFET  14 , the type or concentration of the stress-inducing dopant may be different in any of the stress-inducing layer  26 , source/drain region  32 , and source/drain region  34 ; similarly, in the PFET  16 , the type or concentration of the stress-inducing dopant may be different in any of the stress-inducing layer  46 , source/drain region  52 , and source/drain region  54 . Moreover, the magnitude of tensile stress induced in the body  18  and channel of the NFET  14  may be different than the magnitude of the compressive stress induced in the body  20  and channel of the PFET  16 . In addition, any of the dopants discussed may be included with the respective region (e.g., substrate, source/drain region) when the region is formed instead of being implanted into the region after the region is formed. For example, the chemistry of the reaction chamber may be adjusted so that as a source/drain region is being grown or deposited, it includes the dopant. For example, the stress-inducing region  26  or one or both of the source/drain regions  32  and  34  of the NFET  14  may be grown or deposited as SiC; similarly, the stress-inducing region  46  or one or both of the source/drain regions  52  and  54  of the PFET  16  may be grown or deposited as SiGe. Furthermore, regions other than the source/drain regions and substrate may include stress-inducing dopants to impart a stress to a transistor body region, to any other transistor region, or to any region of any device other than a transistor. Moreover, although ranges of stress-inducing-dopant concentrations are described, any concentration, or combination of concentrations, deemed suitable may be used. In addition, if the integrated circuit  12  includes multiple NFETS  14 , then these NFETS need not generate the same level of tensile stress on their respective bodies and channels; similarly, if the integrated circuit includes multiple PFETS  16 , then these PFETS need not generate the same level of compressive stress on their respective bodies and channels. 
         [0033]      FIGS. 2-11  are cross-sectional views of the integrated-circuit portion  10  of  FIG. 1  during respective fabrication steps of the NFET  14  and PFET  16  according to an embodiment. Some fabrication steps may be omitted from  FIGS. 2-11  for brevity, and the disclosed steps may be performed in an order different than that described below. 
         [0034]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , regions  60  and  62  of a semiconductor material such as silicon are formed in a conventional manner over the buried oxide layers  28  and  48 , respectively. 
         [0035]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , in a subsequent step, a mask  64  is formed over the region  62 , and a stress-inducing dopant, such as C, is implanted into the substrate  24  to form intermediate region  65 . The energy of the implant is high enough so that little or no C is implanted into the region  60  or the buried oxide  28 , but is low enough so that the intermediate region is contiguous with the buried oxide such that the still-to-be-formed stress-inducing region  26  ( FIG. 1 ) will be as close as possible to the region  60 , in which the body  18  ( FIG. 1 ) will subsequently be formed. Alternatively, the intermediate region  65  may be formed such that it there is a portion of the substrate  24  between the intermediate region and the buried oxide  28  having little or no stress-inducing dopant. 
         [0036]    Before or after the implant of the stress-inducing dopant, other dopants may be implanted into the substrate  24 , buried oxide  28 , or region  60  using the mask  64 . For example, as described above in conjunction with  FIG. 1 , one may implant a ground-plane dopant such as In or As into the substrate  24  using the mask  64 . 
         [0037]    By implanting the stress-inducing dopant into the substrate  24  using the same mask  64  that is used for other implants, one can perform the stress-inducing-dopant implant without increasing the number of masks, and thus without increasing the number of lithography steps, as compared to a fabrication process for a transistor with no stress-inducing region  26  ( FIG. 1 ). 
         [0038]    After the completion of the one or more implants using the mask  64 , the mask is removed in a conventional manner. 
         [0039]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , in a subsequent step, a mask  66  is formed over the region  60 , and a stress-inducing dopant, such as Ge, is implanted into the substrate  44  to form an intermediate region  67 . The energy of the implant is high enough so that little or no Ge is implanted into the region  62  or the buried oxide  48 , but is low enough so that the intermediate region  67  is contiguous with the buried oxide such that the still-to-be-formed stress-inducing region  46  ( FIG. 1 ) will be as close as possible to the region  62 , in which the body  20  ( FIG. 1 ) will subsequently be formed. Alternatively, the intermediate region  67  may be formed such that there is a portion of the substrate  44  between the intermediate region and the buried oxide  48  having little or no stress-inducing dopant. 
         [0040]    Before or after the implant of the stress-inducing dopant, other dopants may be implanted into the substrate  44 , buried oxide  48 , or region  62  using the mask  66 . For example, as described above in conjunction with  FIG. 1 , one may implant a ground-plane dopant into the substrate  44  using the mask  66 . 
         [0041]    By implanting the stress-inducing dopant into the substrate  44  using the same mask  66  that is used for other implants, one can perform the stress-inducing-dopant implant without increasing the number of masks, and thus without increasing the number of lithography steps, as compared to a fabrication process for a transistor with no stress-inducing region  46  ( FIG. 1 ). 
         [0042]    After the completion of the one or more implants using the mask  66 , the mask is removed in a conventional manner, and the die on which the integrated circuit  12  is disposed, in its current state of fabrication, is subjected to a rapid thermal anneal (RTA) to re-crystallize the substrates  24  and  44  (where the substrates  24  and  44  are single-crystalline (i.e., monocrystalline) silicon, the stress-inducing implants, ground-plane implants, or other implants can damage the crystal-lattice structure, and the RTA effectively repairs some or all of this damage). Alternatively, the integrated circuit  12  may be subjected to respective RTAs after the one or more implants using the mask  64  ( FIG. 3 ), and then after the one or more implants using the mask  66 . Furthermore, because the one or more RTAs would be performed even if no stress-inducing dopants were implanted, these one or more RTAs add no further steps to the fabrication process as compared to a fabrication process for transistors with no stress-inducing regions  26  and  46  ( FIG. 1 ). 
         [0043]    Referring to  FIG. 5 , in a subsequent step, the die on which the integrated circuit  12  is disposed, in its current state of fabrication, is subjected to a high-temperature anneal (HTA) to fully form the stress-inducing regions  26  and  46  from the intermediate regions  65  and  67  ( FIGS. 3 and 4 ), respectively. For example, the HTA may cause the stress-inducing dopants to diffuse and expand the volume of the intermediate regions  65  and  67  so as to form the stress-inducing regions  26  and  46 , and may cause these stress-inducting regions to be contiguous with the buried oxides  28  and  48  such that the stress-inducting regions are as close as possible to the still-to-be-formed body regions  18  and  20  ( FIG. 1 ). Alternatively, the one or more RTAs discussed above in conjunction with  FIGS. 3 and 4  may be omitted, and only the HTA may be performed to recrystallize the substrates  24  and  44  and form the stress-inducing regions  26  and  46 . Furthermore, regardless of whether the HTA is performed in addition to or instead of the one or more RTAs, it may not add an additional step to the fabrication process as compared to the fabrication process of transistors without substrate stress-inducing regions because the HTA may be used to form other regions as well. 
         [0044]    Referring to  FIG. 6 , in a subsequent step, body-dopant implants (not shown in  FIG. 6 ) are performed into the regions  60  and  62  if these implants have not already been performed. 
         [0045]    Next, the gate insulators  36  and  56  are formed over the regions  60  and  62  in a conventional manner, and the gates  38  and  58  are formed over the gate insulators in a conventional manner such that the body  18  is formed in the portion of the region  60  beneath the gate  38  and the body  20  is formed in the portion of the region  62  beneath the gate  58 . Each gate  38  and  58  may be formed as a single-layer or multi-layer structure. 
         [0046]    Dopant implants, such as lightly-doped-drain (LDD) implants, then may be made into the exposed portions of the regions  60  and  62  using the gates  38  and  58  as masks. As described below, the exposed portions of the regions  60  and  62  will become lower portions of the source/drain regions  32  and  34  and  52  and  54 , respectively. 
         [0047]    Referring to  FIG. 7 , in a subsequent step, intermediate spacers  70  and  72  are formed, for example, from silicon nitride (SiN), on the sidewalls of the gates  38  and  58  in a conventional manner. 
         [0048]    Next, raised source/drain portions  74  and  76 , and  78  and  80 , are formed, (e.g., epitaxially grown) on the exposed portions of the regions  60  and  62  in a conventional manner to form the source/drain regions  32  and  34 , and  52  and  54 , respectively. 
         [0049]    Referring to  FIG. 8 , in a subsequent step, source/drain spacers  82  and  84  are formed over the intermediate spacers  70  and  72  to form the sidewall spacers  40  and  60 , respectively. The source/drain spacers  82  and  84  may be formed by forming respective first regions  86  and  88  of silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) over the intermediate spacers  70  and  72 , and then by forming respective second regions  90  and  92  of SiN over the first regions. 
         [0050]    Referring to  FIG. 9 , in a subsequent step, a mask  96  is formed over the gate  58  and source/drain regions  52  and  54 , and a tensile-stress-inducing dopant, such as C, is implanted into the source/drain regions  32  and  34 ; this implant may be called a stress “seeding” implant. The gate  38  and sidewall spacer  40  act to mask the body  18  from this implant (a mask, not shown, may be formed over the gate  38  to shield it from implanted dopants). As discussed above in conjunction with  FIG. 1 , one may implant a lower concentration of stress-inducting dopant into the source/drain regions  32  and  34  as compared to the concentration of stress-inducing dopant in the region  26  for a number of reasons, including: 1) reducing or eliminating the amount of stress-inducing dopant that may diffuse into the body  18 , and 2) because the source/drain regions  32  and  34  are contiguous with the body  18 , a given magnitude of tensile stress may be induced in the body by a smaller concentration of stress-inducing dopant in the source/drain regions as compared to the concentration of dopant needed in the region  26  to induce the same magnitude of tensile stress in the body. 
         [0051]    Before or after the implant of the stress-inducing dopant, other dopants, such as a conventional source/drain activation dopant (e.g., As) that makes the source drain/regions  32  and  34  N-type, may be implanted into the source/drain regions using the mask  96 . 
         [0052]    By implanting the stress-inducing dopant into the source/drain regions  32  and  34  using the same mask  96  that is used for one or more other implants, one can perform the stress-inducing-dopant implant without increasing the number of masks, and thus without increasing the number of lithography steps, as compared to a fabrication process for a transistor with no stress-inducing dopant in the source/drain regions. 
         [0053]    After the completion of the one or more implants using the mask  96 , the mask is removed in a conventional manner. 
         [0054]    Referring to  FIG. 10 , in a subsequent step, a mask  100  is formed over the gate  38  and source/drain regions  32  and  34 , and a compressive-stress-inducing dopant, such as Ge, is implanted into the source/drain regions  52  and  54 ; this implant may be called a stress “seeding” implant. The gate  58  and sidewall spacer  60  act to mask the body  20  from this implant (a mask, not shown, may be formed over the gate  58  to shield it from implanted dopants). As described above in conjunction with  FIG. 1 , one may implant a lower concentration of stress-inducting dopant into the source/drain regions  52  and  54  as compared to the concentration of stress-inducing dopant in the region  46  for a number of reasons, including: 1) reducing or eliminating the amount of stress-inducing dopant that may diffuse into the body  20 , and 2) because the source/drain regions  52  and  54  are contiguous with the body  20 , a given magnitude of compressive stress may be induced in the body by a smaller concentration of stress-inducing dopant in the source/drain regions as compared to the concentration of dopant needed in the region  46  to induce the same magnitude of compressive stress in the body. 
         [0055]    Before or after the implant of the stress-inducing dopant, other dopants, such as a conventional source/drain activation dopant (e.g., P) that makes the source drain/regions  52  and  54  P-type, may be implanted into the source/drain regions using the mask  100 . 
         [0056]    By implanting the stress-inducing dopant into the source/drain regions  52  and  54  using the same mask  100  that is used for one or more other implants, one can perform the stress-inducing-dopant implant without increasing the number of masks, and thus without increasing the number of lithography steps, as compared to a fabrication process for a transistor with no stress-inducing dopant in the source/drain regions. 
         [0057]    After the completion of the one or more implants using the mask  100 , the mask is removed in a conventional manner. 
         [0058]    Referring to  FIG. 11 , in a subsequent step, after the completion of the one or more implants using the masks  96  and  100  ( FIGS. 9-10 ), the integrated circuit  12 , in its current state of fabrication, is subjected to a HTA to activate the stress-inducing and other dopants in the source/drain regions  32  and  34 , and  52  and  54 , and thus to cause the source/drain regions  32  and  34  to impart a tensile stress to the body  18 , and to cause the source/drain regions  52  and  54  to impart a compressive stress to the body  20 . Alternatively, the integrated circuit  12  may be subjected to respective HTAs after the one or more implants using the mask  96 , and then after the one or more implants using the mask  100 . Furthermore, because the one or more HTAs would be performed to activate one or more other source/drain dopants even if no stress-inducing dopants were implanted, these one or more HTAs add no further steps to the fabrication process as compared to a fabrication process for transistors with no stress-inducing source/drain regions. 
         [0059]    Referring again to  FIG. 1 , additional conventional fabrication steps may be performed to complete the fabrication of the integrated circuit  12 . 
         [0060]    In an alternative embodiment for fabricating the NFET  14  and PFET  16  of  FIG. 1 , where the stress-inducing regions  26  and  46  and the source/drain regions  32  and  34 , and  52  and  54 , are formed (e.g., grown or deposited) already including the stress-inducing dopants (e.g., SiGe or SiC), then the stress-inducing-dopant-implant steps may be omitted, thus further reducing the number of fabrication steps. 
         [0061]      FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view of a portion  110  of an embodiment of an integrated circuit  112 , the portion including an NFET  114  and a PFET  116  with stressed bodies  118  and  120 , respectively; in an embodiment, the NFET and PFET are extreme-thin-silicon-on-insulator (ETSOI) transistors. 
         [0062]    The NFET  114  and the PFET  116  are similar to the NFET  14  and NFET  16  of the integrated circuit  12  except that the buried oxides  28  and  48  of the integrated circuit  12  are thinner than the buried oxides  122  and  124  of the integrated circuit  112 , which may have a thickness in an approximate range of 50-140 nm. 
         [0063]    Furthermore, the NFET  114  and PFET  116  may omit stress-inducing regions in their substrates  126  and  128  because the stress induced by these regions on the bodies  118  and  120  may be significantly attenuated, and thus rendered negligible, by the relatively thick buried oxides  122  and  124 . 
         [0064]    In an embodiment, the integrated circuit  112  may be formed in a manner similar to the manner in which the integrated circuit  12  is formed as described above in conjunction with  FIGS. 2-11 . But if the NFET  114  and PFET  116  lack stress-inducing regions in their substrates  126  and  128 , then the stress-inducing-dopant implant steps of  FIGS. 3 and 4  may be omitted. 
         [0065]      FIG. 13  is a block diagram of an embodiment of a system  150 , which may include one or more of the integrated circuits  12  and  112  of  FIGS. 1 and 12  according to an embodiment. For purposes of illustration, the system  150  is hereinafter described as including one integrated circuit  12 , it being understood that the system may include multiple integrated circuits  12 , a single or multiple integrated circuits  112 , or a combination of any number of the integrated circuits  12  and  112 . 
         [0066]    Examples of the system  150  include a computer system, a smart phone, a computer pad or tablet, and a portable music device. 
         [0067]    In addition to the integrated circuit  120 , the system  150  includes an input device  152 , such as a key pad, an output device  154 , such as a display screen, a storage device  156 , such as a disk drive, and a controller  158 , such as a microprocessor or microcontroller, coupled to the integrated circuit  12  (whether or not the integrated circuit is a controller), input device, output device, and storage device. 
         [0068]    Still referring to  FIG. 13 , alternate embodiments of the system  150  are contemplated. For example, although shown as being disposed on different dies, the controller  158  and integrated circuit  12  may be disposed on a same die, or the controller may be another type of integrated circuit. 
         [0069]    While the subject matter discussed herein is susceptible to various modifications and alternative constructions, certain illustrated embodiments thereof are shown in the drawings and have been described above in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the claims to the specific forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

Technology Category: 5