Method for manufacturing semiconductor device

• US 20030232503A1
• Filed: 06/13/2003
• Published: 12/18/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Renesas Electronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Electronics Corporation (Renesas Electronics Corporation)
• Inventors: Masuda, Shuichi
• Granted Patent: US 6,825,128 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 438/700
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02164 the material being a silicon oxide, e.g. SiO2
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/31612 on a silicon body
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/76235 trench shape altered by a local oxidation of silicon process step, e.g. trench corner rounding by LOCOS

Abstract

A provided method for manufacturing the semiconductor device includes the steps of: forming a trench in a silicon substrate on which a silicon oxide film and a silicon nitride film are sequentially stacked; oxidizing the silicon substrate by an oxidation method of not forming nearly at all a silicon oxide film on a surface of the silicon nitride film, to form a silicon oxide film on the surface of the trench and perform pullback etching on the silicon nitride film; and performing rounding oxidation by using radical oxidation to round an edge of the surface of the trench. Therefore, it is possible to perform pullback etching on the nitride film, even in case of performing rounding oxidation by using radical oxidation.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising, burying an insulating material into a trench formed in a semiconductor substrate to thereby form an element isolation region in order to form a desired element in each of semiconductor regions which are insulated and isolated from each other by said element isolation region, said method comprising:

a trench formation step for sequentially forming and stacking an oxide film and a nitride film on said semiconductor substrate, to selectively etch off said nitride film and said oxide film which are present on a region in which said element isolation region is expected to be formed and then selectively etch off said semiconductor substrate using said nitride film as a mask, thus forming said trench;

a semiconductor substrate oxidation step for oxidizing said semiconductor substrate by a method of forming an oxide film only on a surface of said trench without forming nearly at all an oxide film on a surface of said nitride film;

a nitride film pullback step for performing pullback etching on said nitride film in such a manner that a width of an opening in said nitride film may be larger than a width of an opening of said trench;

a radical oxidation step for performing rounding oxidation by use of radical oxidation method to thus round an edge of the surface of said trench; and

an insulating material burying step for burying said insulating material into said trench.

2. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising, burying an oxide into a trench formed in a silicon substrate to thereby form an element isolation region in order to form a desired element in each of semiconductor regions which are insulated and isolated from each other by said element isolation region, said method comprising:

a trench formation step for sequentially forming and stacking a silicon oxide film and a silicon nitride film on said silicon substrate, to selectively etch off said silicon nitride film and said silicon oxide film which are present on a region in which said element isolation region is expected to be formed and then selectively etch off said silicon substrate using said silicon nitride film as a mask, thus forming said trench;

a silicon substrate oxidation step for oxidizing said silicon substrate by an oxidation method of forming a silicon oxide film only on a surface of said trench without forming nearly at all the silicon oxide film on a surface of said silicon nitride film;

a silicon nitride film pullback step for performing pullback etching on said silicon nitride film in such a manner that a width of an opening in said silicon nitride film may be larger than a width of an opening of said trench;

a radical oxidation step for performing rounding oxidation by use of radical oxidation to thus round an edge of the surface of said trench; and

an oxide burying step for burying said oxide into said trench.

3. The method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein said silicon substrate oxidation step is performed by dry oxidation at 600-750°

C., to form said silicon oxide film.

4. The method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to claim 3, wherein said silicon oxide film is formed so as to have a film thickness of 1-4 nm.

5. The method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to claim 3, wherein said dry oxidation method is performed in an oxidizing atmosphere containing an oxygen gas.

6. The method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to claim 5, wherein said dry oxidation is performed in an oxidizing atmosphere in which said oxygen gas is diluted by an inert gas.

7. The method for manufacturing the semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein said silicon substrate pullback step is performed using hot phosphoric acid.

8. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising, burying an oxide into a trench formed in a silicon substrate to thereby form an element isolation region in order to form a desired element in each of semiconductor regions which are insulated and isolated from each other by said element isolation region, said method comprising:

a trench formation step for sequentially forming and stacking a silicon oxide film and a silicon nitride film on said silicon substrate, to selectively etch off said silicon nitride film and said silicon oxide film which are present on a region in which said element isolation region is expected to be formed and then selectively etch off said silicon substrate using said silicon nitride film as a mask, thus forming said trench;

a silicon substrate oxidation step for oxidizing said silicon substrate by a dry oxidation method of forming a silicon oxide film only on a surface of said trench without forming nearly at all the silicon oxide film on a surface of said silicon nitride film;

a silicon nitride film pullback step for performing pullback etching on said silicon nitride film in such a manner that a width of an opening in said silicon nitride film may be larger than a width of an opening of said trench;

a radical oxidation step for performing rounding oxidation by use of radical oxidation to thus round an edge of the surface of said trench;

an oxide burying step for burying said oxide into said trench, and

wherein said dry oxidation method is performed under conditions at 600-750°

C. in an oxidizing atmosphere containing an oxygen gas.

9. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 8, wherein said dry oxidation method is performed under conditions at 600-750°

C. in an oxidizing atmosphere of 100% oxygen gas.