# US 2019/0378933 A1 · Oxide semiconductor film, thin film transistor, oxide sintered body and sputtering target

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- Number: US 2019/0378933 A1
- Document ID: US20190378933A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 16/485,381
- Filed: 2018-02-15
- Published: 2019-12-12
- Earliest claimed: 2017-02-22
- Assignees: Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.
- Applicants: Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.
- Inventors: Kazuyoshi INOUE; Masatoshi SHIBATA
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190378933A1

## CPC

- H10D 30/6756: {Amorphous oxide semiconductors}
- C04B 35/01: based on oxide ceramics
- C04B 35/457: based on tin oxides or stannates
- C04B 35/6261: {Milling}
- C04B 35/64: Burning or sintering processes (C04B33/32 takes precedence {; powder metallurgy B22F})
- C23C 14/08: Oxides (C23C14/10 takes precedence)
- C23C 14/34: Sputtering
- C23C 14/3414: {Metallurgical or chemical aspects of target preparation, e.g. casting, powder metallurgy}
- H10D 12/211: {Gated diodes}
- H10D 30/6755: {Oxide semiconductors, e.g. zinc oxide, copper aluminium oxide or cadmium stannate}
- H10D 62/80: characterised by the materials
- H10D 62/82: Heterojunctions
- H10D 99/00: Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
- H10P 14/22: using physical deposition, e.g. vacuum deposition or sputtering
- H10P 14/2905: {Silicon, silicon germanium or germanium}
- H10P 14/3434: {being oxide semiconductor materials (Group IIB-VIA semiconductor materials H10P14/3424)}
- C04B 2235/3224: Rare earth oxide or oxide forming salts thereof, e.g. scandium oxide
- C04B 2235/3225: Yttrium oxide or oxide-forming salts thereof
- C04B 2235/3227: Lanthanum oxide or oxide-forming salts thereof
- C04B 2235/3286: Gallium oxides, gallates, indium oxides, indates, thallium oxides, thallates or oxide forming salts thereof, e.g. zinc gallate
- C04B 2235/3293: Tin oxides, stannates or oxide forming salts thereof, e.g. indium tin oxide [ITO]
- C04B 2235/604: Pressing at temperatures other than sintering temperatures
- C04B 2235/6562: Heating rate
- C04B 2235/6567: Treatment time
- C04B 2235/77: Density
- C04B 2235/80: Phases present in the sintered or melt-cast ceramic products other than the main phase
- H10D: INORGANIC ELECTRIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES
- C04B: LIME, MAGNESIA; SLAG; CEMENTS; COMPOSITIONS THEREOF, e.g. MORTARS, CONCRETE OR LIKE BUILDING MATERIALS; ARTIFICIAL STONE {(roofing granules E04D7/005)}; CERAMICS (devitrified glass-ceramics C03C10/00); REFRACTORIES; TREATMENT OF NATURAL STONE
- C23C: COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL (making metal-coated products by extrusion B21C23/22; covering with metal by connecting pre-existing layers to articles, see the relevant places, e.g. B21D39/00, B23K; metallising of glass C03C; metallising mortars, concrete, artificial stone, ceramics or natural stone C04B41/00; enamelling of, or applying a vitreous layer to, metals C23D; treating metal surfaces or coating of metals by electrolysis or electrophoresis C25D; single-crystal film growth C30B; by metallising textiles D06M11/83; decorating textiles by locally metallising D06Q1/04)
- H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10

## Abstract

An oxide semiconductor film contains In, Ga, and Sn at respective atomic ratios of 0.01≤Ga/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.30 . . . (1), 0.01≤Sn/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.40 . . . (2), and 0.55≤In/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.98 . . . (3), and a rare-earth element X at an atomic ratio of 0.03≤X/(In+Ga+Sn+X)≤0.25 . . . (4).

## Claims

### Claim 1

An oxide semiconductor film comprising In, Ga, and Sn at respective atomic ratios of:
0.01≤Ga/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.30 (1);
0.01≤Sn/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.40 (2); and
0.55≤In/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.98 (3), and
a rare-earth element X at an atomic ratio of
0.03≤X/(In+Ga+Sn+X)≤0.25 (4).

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The oxide semiconductor film according to claim 1, wherein the rare-earth element X is at least one rare-earth element selected from the group consisting of yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), neodymium (Nd), samarium (Sm), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), terbium (Tb), dysprosium (Dy), holmium (Ho), erbium (Er), thulium (Tm), ytterbium (Yb), and lutetium (Lu).

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The oxide semiconductor film according to claim 2, wherein the rare-earth element X is at least one rare-earth element selected from the group consisting of yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), neodymium (Nd), and samarium (Sm).

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

A thin-film transistor comprising the oxide semiconductor film according to claim 1.

### Claim 5

A sintered oxide comprising In, Ga, and Sn at respective atomic ratios of:
0.01≤Ga/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.30 (5);
0.01≤Sn/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.40 (6); and
0.55≤In/(In+Ga+Sn)≤0.98 (7), and
a rare-earth element X at an atomic ratio of
0.03≤X/(In+Ga+Sn+X)≤0.25 (8).

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The sintered oxide according to claim 5, wherein the rare-earth element X is at least one rare-earth element selected from the group consisting of yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), neodymium (Nd), samarium (Sm), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), terbium (Tb), dysprosium (Dy), holmium (Ho), erbium (Er), thulium (Tm), ytterbium (Yb), and lutetium (Lu).

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The sintered oxide according to claim 6, wherein the rare-earth element X is at least one rare-earth element selected from the group consisting of yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), neodymium (Nd), and samarium (Sm).

### Claim 8 (depends on 5)

The sintered oxide according to claim 5, wherein the sintered oxide comprises a main component in a form of In2O3 crystal, and the sintered oxide further comprises at least one of X2Sn2O7 crystal and X3Ga5O12 crystal, X representing the rare-earth element.

### Claim 9 (depends on 5)

The sintered oxide according to claim 5, wherein a relative density of the sintered oxide is 95% or more.

### Claim 10 (depends on 5)

The sintered oxide according to claim 5, wherein a bulk resistivity of the sintered oxide is 30 mΩcm or less.

### Claim 11 (depends on 5)

A sputtering target comprising: the sintered oxide according to claim 5; and a backing plate.

### Claim 12 (depends on 4)

An electronic device comprising the thin-film transistor according to claim 4.

### Claim 13 (depends on 2)

A thin-film transistor comprising the oxide semiconductor film according to claim 2.

### Claim 14 (depends on 3)

A thin-film transistor comprising the oxide semiconductor film according to claim 3.

### Claim 15 (depends on 6)

The sintered oxide according to claim 6, wherein the sintered oxide comprises a main component in a form of In2O3 crystal, and the sintered oxide further comprises at least one of X2Sn2O7 crystal and X3Ga5O12 crystal, X representing the rare-earth element.

### Claim 16 (depends on 7)

The sintered oxide according to claim 7, wherein the sintered oxide comprises a main component in a form of In2O3 crystal, and the sintered oxide further comprises at least one of X2Sn2O7 crystal and X3Ga5O12 crystal, X representing the rare-earth element.