# US 9,520,560 B2 · Semiconductor device and manufacturing method thereof

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- Number: US 9,520,560 B2
- Document ID: US9520560B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 14/444,653
- Filed: 2014-07-28
- Published: 2015-12-03
- Granted: 2016-12-13
- Earliest claimed: 2014-06-02
- Assignees: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
- Applicants: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
- Inventors: Aoi Hidaka
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9520560B2

## CPC

- H10N 70/011: {Manufacture or treatment of multistable switching devices}
- H10N 70/235: {between different crystalline phases, e.g. cubic and hexagonal}
- H10N 70/826: {adapted for essentially vertical current flow, e.g. sandwich or pillar type devices}
- H10N 70/841: {Electrodes}
- H10N 70/8828: {Tellurides, e.g. GeSbTe}
- H10N: ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR

## Abstract

A semiconductor device according to an embodiment comprises a base layer. A material layer is provided on the base layer. A lower layer portion is provided in lower parts of trenches or holes formed in the material layer and has a crystal structure in a direction not perpendicular to a surface of the base layer. An upper layer portion is provided on the lower layer portion in the trenches or the holes and has a crystal structure in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the base layer.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A semiconductor device comprising:
a base layer;
an interlayer dielectric film provided directly on the base layer;
a lower layer portion provided in lower parts of trenches or holes in the interlayer dielectric film and having a crystal structure in a direction not perpendicular to a surface of the base layer; and
an upper layer portion provided on the lower layer portion in the trenches or the holes and having a crystal structure in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the base layer.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The device of claim 1, further comprising a phase-change material layer provided on the upper layer portion and having crystals oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the base layer.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The device of claim 2, wherein the phase-change material layer is a chalcogen compound containing tellurium (Te).

### Claim 4 (depends on 2)

The device of claim 2, wherein the phase-change material layer contains at least antimony (Sb) or bismuth (Bi) in addition to tellurium (Te).

### Claim 5 (depends on 2)

The device of claim 2, wherein the phase-change material layer contains atoms reversibly moving due to application of an electrical energy in addition to tellurium (Te).

### Claim 6 (depends on 2)

The device of claim 2, wherein the phase-change material layer is a stacked film including Sb2Te3 layers and GeTe layers alternately stacked.

### Claim 7 (depends on 2)

The device of claim 2, wherein the phase-change material layer has a superlattice structure.

### Claim 8 (depends on 2)

The device of claim 2, wherein the phase-change material layer is a data recording layer of an iPCM.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The device of claim 1, wherein a material of the lower layer portion or the upper layer portion has an out-of-plane orientation being capable of film formation on the interlayer dielectric film and has a type of a NaCl crystal.

### Claim 10 (depends on 8)

The device of claim 8, wherein a material of the lower layer portion or the upper layer portion is any of TiN, VN, ZrN, NbN, HfN, and TaN.

### Claim 11 (depends on 8)

The device of claim 8, wherein:
the base layer is a wiring layer above a substrate, and
the lower layer portion and the upper layer portion are contacts embedded in contact holes in the interlayer dielectric film.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The device of claim 1, wherein inner walls of the trenches or holes are tapered in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the base layer such that a distance between the inner walls at a bottom side of the trenches or holes is smaller than a distance between the inner walls at a top side of the trenches or holes.