Backend field emission devices
OwnerAbhishek A. Sharma, Wilfred Gomes +1inventors
InventorsAbhishek A. Sharma, Wilfred Gomes, Tahir Ghani
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Abstract
A backend field emission device may include a field emission device in a backend of line (BEOL) layer, such as an interconnect layer. In one example, a backend field emission device includes a first electrode coupled with a first conductive interconnect, a second electrode coupled with a second conductive interconnect, an airgap between the first electrode and the second electrode, and a third electrode between the first electrode and the second electrode and coplanar with the airgap.
Claims20
An integrated circuit (IC) structure, comprising:
- a device region;
- a first interconnect layer over the device region, wherein the first interconnect layer comprises a first conductive interconnect;
- a second interconnect layer over the first interconnect layer, wherein the second interconnect layer comprises a second conductive interconnect;
- and
- a field emission device between the first interconnect layer and the second interconnect layer, wherein the field emission device comprises:
- a first electrode coupled with the first conductive interconnect,
- a second electrode coupled with the second conductive interconnect,
- an airgap between the first electrode and the second electrode, and
- a third electrode between the first electrode and the second electrode and coplanar with the airgap.
An integrated circuit (IC) structure, comprising:
- a back-end of line (BEOL) layer;
- a first electrode and a second electrode over the BEOL layer, wherein one of the first electrode and the second electrode is an emitter and another of the first electrode and the second electrode is a collector;
- a void in a plane between the first electrode and the second electrode;
- a gate electrode material in the plane between the first electrode and the second electrode;
- and
- an insulator material between the gate electrode material and the first electrode, and between the gate electrode material and the second electrode.
A method of fabricating an integrated circuit (IC) structure, the method comprising:
- providing a preliminary IC structure comprising an interconnect layer;
- forming a first electrode over the interconnect layer;
- providing an insulator material over the first electrode;
- forming a gate electrode in an opening in the insulator material;
- providing the insulator material over the gate electrode;
- removing the insulator material in a region over the first electrode, wherein removal of the insulator material in the region exposes a portion of the first electrode;
- and
- forming a second electrode over an airgap over the first electrode.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.