Electronic device and process achieving a reduction in alpha particle emissions from boron-based compounds essentially free of boron-10
AssigneeTexas Instruments Incorporated
InventorsRobert C. Baumann, Timothy Z. Hossain
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Reduced soft errors in charge-sensitive circuit elements such as volatile memory cells 200 occur by using boron-11 to the exclusion of boron-10 or essentially free of boron-10 in borosilicate glass 230, 240 deposited on the substrate 206 directly over the arrays of memory cells. Boron-10 exhibits a high likelihood of fission to release a 1.47 MeV alpha particle upon capture of a naturally occurring cosmic ray neutron. This capture occurs frequently in boron-10 because of its high neutron capture cross-section. Boron-11 does not fission.
Claims8
A process of making a dynamic random access memory part comprising:
- A. forming an array of memory cells in a semiconductor substrate with each cell including a pass transistor and a capacitor;
- and
- B. forming a layer of borosilicate glass over at least the capacitor with the boron in the borosilicate glass consisting essentially of boron-11.
A process of forming a coating comprising:
- A. forming a substrate of material consisting of silicon;
- and
- B. forming a coating of borosilicate glass on the substrate, the boron in the borosilicate glass consisting essentially of boron-11.
A process of making a device comprising:
- forming an alpha particle charge sensitive part, including forming a dynamic memory cell having a single transistor connected to a charge sensitive capacitor;
- and
- forming a boron-containing material proximate to the alpha particle charge sensitive capacitor, the boron consisting essentially of boron-11.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.