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US 8,912,608 B2Granted
Semiconductor device and fabrication method thereof
AssigneeTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.
InventorsYu-Lien Huang, Chun-Fu Cheng
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A semiconductor device and a method for fabricating the semiconductor device are disclosed. A gate stack is formed over a substrate. A spacer is formed adjoining a sidewall of the gate stack. A recess is formed between the spacer and the substrate. Then, a strained feature is formed in the recess. The disclosed method provides an improved method by providing a space between the spacer and the substrate for forming the strained feature, therefor, to enhance carrier mobility and upgrade the device performance.
Claims20
A semiconductor device, comprising:
- a gate stack having a gate electrode layer and a gate dielectric layer over a substrate;
- a spacer adjoining a sidewall of the gate stack;
- and
- a first strained feature vertically positioned between the substrate and the spacer, wherein a first portion of the spacer is positioned directly over a portion of the first strained feature and wherein a second portion of the spacer is positioned directly under the portion of the first strained feature, wherein the first portion of the spacer is directly over the second portion of the spacer such that the second portion is closer to the substrate than the first portion.
1 more element
A semiconductor device, comprising:
- a gate stack having a gate electrode layer and a gate dielectric layer disposed over a top surface of a substrate;
- a sidewall spacer adjoining a sidewall of the gate stack;
- a strained feature adjacent to the sidewall of the gate stack, wherein the strained feature comprises a first portion vertically between the sidewall spacer and the substrate and a second portion in the substrate, wherein the first portion of the strained feature includes a top surface facing away from the top surface of the substrate;
- and
- an epitaxial capping layer formed over the strained feature, wherein the epitaxial capping layer comprises a material different than the strained feature, wherein the epitaxial capping layer covers a first area of the top surface of the first portion of the strained feature while a second area of the top surface of the first portion of the strained feature is uncovered by the epitaxial capping layer, wherein the first area of the strained feature is closer to the gate stack than the second area of the strained feature.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.