Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company, ltd. (20240136226). SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE PRE-CLEANING simplified abstract
Contents
- 1 SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE PRE-CLEANING
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE PRE-CLEANING
Organization Name
taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company, ltd.
Inventor(s)
Li-Wei Chu of New Taipei City (TW)
Yu-Kai Chen of Taipei City (TW)
Wei-Yip Loh of Hsinchu City (TW)
Chih-Wei Chang of Hsin-Chu (TW)
Ming-Hsing Tsai of Chu-Pei City (TW)
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE PRE-CLEANING - A simplified explanation of the abstract
This abstract first appeared for US patent application 20240136226 titled 'SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE PRE-CLEANING
Simplified Explanation
The abstract describes a method of using ammonium fluoride gas to form a protection layer for various components of a semiconductor device during a pre-clean etch process. This protection layer is created by oversupplying nitrogen trifluoride, which leads to increased formation of ammonium fluoride, coating the interlayer dielectric layers, insulating caps, and source/drain regions with a thick protection layer. This protects these components from being etched by fluorine ions during the pre-clean process.
- Ammonium fluoride gas used to form protection layer
- Oversupply of nitrogen trifluoride leads to increased formation of ammonium fluoride
- Protection layer coats interlayer dielectric layers, insulating caps, and source/drain regions
- Protects components from being etched by fluorine ions during pre-clean process
Potential Applications
The technology can be applied in the semiconductor industry for protecting various components during the pre-clean etch process.
Problems Solved
This technology solves the problem of etching damage to interlayer dielectric layers, insulating caps, and source/drain regions during the pre-clean etch process.
Benefits
The benefits of this technology include improved protection of semiconductor components, leading to enhanced device performance and reliability.
Potential Commercial Applications
The technology can be commercialized for use in semiconductor manufacturing processes to improve the quality and durability of semiconductor devices.
Possible Prior Art
One possible prior art could be the use of other protective gases or materials during semiconductor manufacturing processes to prevent etching damage.
Unanswered Questions
How does the oversupply of nitrogen trifluoride specifically lead to increased formation of ammonium fluoride?
The abstract mentions that oversupplying nitrogen trifluoride causes increased formation of ammonium fluoride, but it does not provide details on the chemical reaction or mechanism behind this process.
What are the specific semiconductor devices or applications that can benefit most from this technology?
While the abstract mentions the general application of protecting semiconductor components, it does not specify which types of devices or applications would see the most significant improvements from using this protection layer.
Original Abstract Submitted
an ammonium fluoride gas may be used to form a protection layer for one or more interlayer dielectric layers, one or more insulating caps, and/or one or more source/drain regions of a semiconductor device during a pre-clean etch process. the protection layer can be formed through an oversupply of nitrogen trifluoride during the pre-clean etch process. the oversupply of nitrogen trifluoride causes an increased formation of ammonium fluoride, which coats the interlayer dielectric layer(s), the insulating cap(s), and/or the source/drain region(s) with a thick protection layer. the protection layer protects the interlayer dielectric layer(s), the insulating cap(s), and/or the source/drain region(s) during the pre-clean process from being etched by fluorine ions formed during the pre-clean process.
