System and method for modeling epitaxial growth in a 3-D virtual fabrication environment
AssigneeCoventor, Inc.
InventorsDaniel Faken, Kenneth B. Greiner, David M. Fried, Stephen R. Breit
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A virtual fabrication environment for semiconductor device structure development is discussed that enables the use of a selective epitaxy process to virtually model epitaxial growth of a crystalline material layer. The epitaxial growth occurs on a crystalline substrate surface of a virtually fabricated model device structure. A surface growth rate may be defined over possible 3D surface orientations of the virtually fabricated device structure by modeling the growth rates of the three major families of crystal planes. Growth rates along neighboring non-crystalline material may also be modeled.
Claims17
A non-transitory computer-readable medium holding computer-executable instructions for virtually modeling epitaxial growth of a crystalline material layer on a crystalline substrate surface of a semiconductor device structure, the instructions when executed causing the computing device to:
- receive, for a semiconductor structure to be virtually fabricated, a selection of 2D design data and a process sequence that includes a plurality of processes;
- receive input parameters, the input parameters including growth rates for crystal planes of interest and for a type and orientation of crystalline substrate;
- perform with the computing device a virtual fabrication run for the structure using the process sequence and 2D design data, the virtual fabrication run building a 3D structural model containing a crystalline material surface;
- and
- advance the surface of crystalline material in the 3D structural model with a numerical surface evolution technique, using the input parameters and an interpolation function to compute growth rates as a function of local surface orientation at points of interest on the growing surface.
A computing-device implemented method for virtually modeling epitaxial growth of a crystalline material layer on a crystalline substrate surface of a semiconductor device structure, comprising:
- receiving, for a semiconductor structure to be virtually fabricated, a selection of 2D design data and a process sequence that includes a plurality of processes;
- receiving input parameters, the input parameters including growth rates for crystal planes of interest and for a type and orientation of crystalline substrate;
- performing with the computing device a virtual fabrication run for the structure using the process sequence and 2D design data, the virtual fabrication run building a 3D structural model containing a crystalline material surface;
- and
- advancing the surface of crystalline material in the 3D structural model with a numerical surface evolution technique, using the input parameters and an interpolation function to compute growth rates as a function of local surface orientation at points of interest on the growing surface.
A virtual fabrication system for virtually modeling epitaxial growth of a crystalline material layer on a crystalline substrate surface of a semiconductor device structure, comprising:
- a computing device equipped with a processor and configured to receive input data with a 3D modeling engine, the input data including 2D design data and a process sequence for a semiconductor device structure to be virtually fabricated, the input data further including input parameters for growth rates of crystal planes of interest and a type and orientation of crystalline substrate;
- and
- a display surface in communication with the computing device and displaying the results of a virtual fabrication run conducted by the computing device to build the structure using the process sequence and 2D design data, the virtual fabrication run building a 3D structural model containing a crystalline material surface and advancing the surface of crystalline material in the 3D structural model with a numerical surface evolution technique, using the input parameters and an interpolation function to compute growth rates as a function of local surface orientation at points of interest on the growing surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.