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US 6,784,124 B2Granted
Methods of selective oxidation conditions for dielectric conditioning
AssigneeMicron Technology, Inc.
InventorsRonald A. Weimer, Don Carl Powell
Life of this patent
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AssigneeMicron Technology, Inc.
InventorsRonald A. Weimer, Don Carl Powell
Estimating the term…
A method for conditioning or repairing a dielectric structure of a semiconductor device structure with selectivity over an adjacent conductive or semiconductive structure of the semiconductor device structure, such as a capacitor dielectric and an adjacent bottom electrode of the capacitor. The method includes exposing the dielectric structure and at least an adjacent surface of the conductive or semiconductive structure to an oxidizing atmosphere that includes at least one oxidant and hydrogen species. The at least one hydrogen species adsorbs to a surface of the conductive or semiconductive structure so as to substantially prevent passage of the at least one oxidant into or through the conductive or semiconductive structure. The oxidant oxidizes or repairs voids or other defects that may be present in the dielectric structure. Semiconductor device structures fabricated by employing the method are also disclosed.
A method for selectively oxidizing a dielectric layer without substantially oxidizing an adjacent conductive or semiconductive material underlying the dielectric layer by exposing at least the dielectric layer and an adjacent surface of the conductive or semiconductive material to an oxidizing atmosphere comprising an oxidant and at least one hydrogen species.
A method for forming a semiconductor device, comprising:
A method of conditioning a dielectric layer comprising:
A method of preventing oxidants from passing through a conductive or semiconductive structure during oxidation of an adjacent dielectric structure, comprising:
The method of claim further comprising forming the conductive or semiconductive structure from a metallic catalyst for ammonia combustion.
A method for increasing the homogeneitv of a capacitor dielectric, comprising:
The method of claim wherein said exposing comprises exposing at least the capacitor dielectric and the adjacent surface of the capacitor electrode to the oxidizing atmosphere, with the oxidant comprising at least one of H2O2, CO, CO2, NO, and N2O.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.