Strained silicon on insulator structures

Abstract

A SOI structure and a method for its fabrication, in which a strained silicon layer lies directly on an insulator layer, contrary to the prior requirement for strained-Si layers to lie directly on a strain-inducing (e.g., SiGe) layer. The method generally entails the forming a silicon layer on a strain-inducing layer so as to form a multilayer structure, in which the strain-inducing layer has a different lattice constant than silicon so that the silicon layer is strained as a result of the lattice mismatch with the strain-inducing layer. The multilayer structure is then bonded to a substrate so that an insulating layer is between the strained silicon layer and the substrate, and so that the strained silicon layer directly contacts the insulating layer. The strain-inducing layer is then removed to expose a surface of the strained silicon layer and yield a strained silicon-on-insulator structure that comprises the substrate, the insulating layer on the substrate, and the strained silicon layer on the insulating layer. As a result, the method yields a strained silicon-on-insulator (SSOI) structure in which the strain in the silicon layer is maintained by the SOI structure.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.