Ferroelectric capacitor plasma charging monitor
AssigneesTexas Instruments Incorporated, Agilent Technologies, Inc.
InventorsShawming Ma, Guoqiang Xing, Stephen R. Gilbert
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Plasma charging devices and methods are disclosed for detecting plasma charging during semiconductor wafer processing. Charging monitors are disclosed having ferroelectric capacitance elements which can be preprogrammed prior to processing steps of interest, and then subsequently measured afterwards, in order to determine whether plasma related charging is a problem in the intervening processing steps.
Claims16
A method of monitoring plasma related charging of a semiconductor wafer, comprising:
- preprogramming a ferroelectric capacitor in the semiconductor wafer to a preprogrammed polarity;
- performing a processing operation on the semiconductor wafer, wherein the ferroelectric capacitor is exposed to the processing operation;
- measuring a post-processing polarity associated with the ferroelectric capacitor after the processing operation;
- and
- determining a plasma related charging associated with the processing operation according to the measured post-processing polarity.
A method of monitoring plasma related charging of a semiconductor wafer, comprising:
- preprogramming a ferroelectric capacitor in the semiconductor wafer;
- performing a processing operation on the semiconductor wafer, wherein the ferroelectric capacitor is exposed to the processing operation;
- measuring a polarity associated with the ferroelectric capacitor;
- determining a plasma related charging associated with the processing operation according to the measured polarity;
- forming the ferroelectric capacitor over the semiconductor wafer, wherein the ferroelectric capacitor comprises a bottom conductive electrode, a ferroelectric material overlying the bottom electrode, and a top conductive electrode overlying the ferroelectric material;
- forming a conductive antenna over the semiconductor wafer, wherein at least a portion of the antenna is exposed so as to allow connection to external instruments;
- forming a resistor over the semiconductor wafer;
- electrically connecting the top conductive electrode to the conductive antenna using the resistor;
- forming a conductive probe pad over the semiconductor wafer, wherein at least a portion of the probe pad is exposed so as to allow connection to external instruments;
- and
- electrically connecting the conductive probe pad to the bottom conductive electrode.
A method of monitoring plasma related charging of a semiconductor wafer, comprising:
- preprogramming a ferroelectric capacitor in the semiconductor wafer;
- performing a processing operation on the semiconductor wafer, wherein the ferroelectric capacitor is exposed to the processing operation;
- measuring a polarity associated with the ferroelectric capacitor;
- and
- determining a plasma related charging associated with the processing operation according to the measured polarity;
- wherein performing a processing operation on the semiconductor wafer comprises exposing the semiconductor wafer to a resist ashing plasma.
A method of fabricating a plasma charging monitor for monitoring plasma related charging in a semiconductor manufacturing process, the method comprising:
- providing a semiconductor wafer;
- forming a ferroelectric capacitor over the semiconductor wafer having first and second electrodes;
- forming an antenna electrically connected to the first electrode over the semiconductor wafer with at least a portion of the antenna exposed to provide electrical connection thereof with an external device;
- and
- forming a probe pad electrically connected to the second electrode over the semiconductor wafer with at least a portion of the probe pad exposed to provide electrical connection thereof with the external device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.