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US 8,697,493 B2Granted
Bonding surfaces for direct bonding of semiconductor structures
AssigneeSoitec
InventorMariam Sadaka
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Methods of directly bonding a first semiconductor structure to a second semiconductor structure include directly bonding at least one device structure of a first semiconductor structure to at least one device structure of a second semiconductor structure in a conductive material-to-conductive material direct bonding process. In some embodiments, at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure may be caused to project a distance beyond an adjacent dielectric material on the first semiconductor structure prior to the bonding process. In some embodiments, one or more of the device structures may include a plurality of integral protrusions that extend from a base structure. Bonded semiconductor structures are fabricated using such methods.
Claims13
A method of directly bonding a first semiconductor structure to a second semiconductor structure, comprising:
- providing the first semiconductor structure comprising:
- at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure comprising a conductive material, the at least one device structure exposed at a bonding surface of the first semiconductor structure;
- and
- a first dielectric material disposed adjacent the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure, a surface of the first dielectric material comprising a recess or pit;
- forming a second dielectric material over the surface of the first dielectric material of the first semiconductor structure to at least partially fill the recess or pit on the surface of the first dielectric material;
- planarizing an exposed surface of the second dielectric material to provide a substantially planar surface at the bonding surface of the first semiconductor structure defining a bond plane of the first semiconductor structure;
- causing the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure to project a first distance from the bond plane of the first semiconductor structure beyond a portion of the first dielectric material adjacent the at least one device structure;
- forming the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure to comprise a plurality of integral protrusions, each integral protrusion of the plurality of integral protrusions projecting the first distance from the bond plane of the first semiconductor structure beyond the portion of the first dielectric material;
- providing the second semiconductor structure comprising:
- at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure comprising a conductive material, the at least one device structure exposed at a bonding surface of the second semiconductor structure;
- and
- a third dielectric material disposed adjacent the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure;
- providing a fourth dielectric material over the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure, an exposed surface of the fourth dielectric material at the bonding surface of the second semiconductor structure defining a bond plane of the second semiconductor structure;
- etching through the fourth dielectric material to form a plurality of apertures extending through the fourth dielectric material to the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure;
- and
- bonding the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure directly to the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure in a conductive material-to-conductive material direct bonding process.
13 more elements
A method of directly bonding a first semiconductor structure to a second semiconductor structure, comprising:
- providing the first semiconductor structure comprising:
- at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure comprising a conductive material, the at least one device structure comprising a plurality of integral protrusions extending from a base structure, the plurality of integral protrusions exposed at a bonding surface of the first semiconductor structure;
- a first dielectric material disposed adjacent the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure, a surface of the first dielectric material comprising a recess or pit;
- and
- a second dielectric material over the surface of the first dielectric material of the first semiconductor structure to at least partially fill the recess or pit on the surface of the first dielectric material and over a portion of the at least one device structure between the integral protrusions of the plurality of integral protrusions of the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure;
- wherein providing the first semiconductor structure comprises forming the plurality of integral protrusions extending from the base structure of the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure, forming the plurality of integral protrusions comprising:
- providing the second dielectric material over the base structure of the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure;
- etching through the second dielectric material to form a plurality of apertures extending through the second dielectric material to the base structure of the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure;
- and
- providing the conductive material in the plurality of apertures to form the plurality of integral protrusions extending from the base structure of the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure;
- planarizing an exposed surface of the second dielectric material to provide a substantially planar surface at the bonding surface of the first semiconductor structure defining a bond plane of the first semiconductor structure;
- providing the second semiconductor structure comprising:
- at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure comprising a conductive material, the at least one device structure comprising a plurality of integral protrusions extending from a base structure, the plurality of integral protrusions exposed at a bonding surface of the second semiconductor structure;
- and
- a third dielectric material exposed at the bonding surface of the second semiconductor structure, the third dielectric material disposed adjacent the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure and extending over a portion of the at least one device structure between the integral protrusions of the plurality of integral protrusions of the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure, an exposed surface of the third dielectric material at the bonding surface of the second semiconductor structure defining a bond plane of the second semiconductor structure;
- and
- bonding the plurality of integral protrusions of the at least one device structure of the first semiconductor structure directly to the plurality of integral protrusions of the at least one device structure of the second semiconductor structure in a conductive material-to-conductive material direct bonding process.
14 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.