| Shinji Kawamura | Semiconductor Equipment Engineering Dept., Device Manufacturing Systems Business Gr., |
| Naoshi Itabashi | Advanced Technology Research Dept., Central Research Lab., |
| Akitaka Makino | Semiconductor Equipment Design Dept., Kasado Div., |
| Masamichi Sakaguchi | Semiconductor Equipmmnet Design Dept., Kasado Div., Design and Manufacturing Gr., |
As the integration scale of semiconductor devices increases and the thickness of gate dielectric film decreases, fabrication without charging damage achieved through highly accurate CD (critical dimension) control is becoming important for gate etching systems. In addition, it is necessary to realize high uniformity across a 300-mm diameter wafer. To solve these problems, Hitachi developed a system that can perform highly accurate, low-damage etching by using UHF-ECR (ultra-high frequency electron cyclotron resonance) plasma to suppress the dissociation and deposition of reaction by-products. This system is capable of fabricating below 0.10-ｵm devices across a 300-mm diameter wafer. The system can also perform highly accurate fabrication without microtrenching, notching or other such deterioration of the etching profile, while maintaining high selectivity with respect to the underlying gate dielectric film. Good results are also being obtained in many other process applications in addition to poly-Si (polycrystalline silicon) gates, such as dual gates, polymetal gates and STI (shallow trench isolation). This system has the same base frame as the system that is already operating with high reliability on the mass production line, so stable mass production of devices is possible.
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UHF-ECR Plasma Etching System |
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The Hitachi Hyoron (Japanese Only) |
UHF-ECR, gate electrode, gate etching, dual gate
