Capacitor with high breakdown field

• US 20060170073A1
• Filed: 01/23/2006
• Published: 08/03/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (AES Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (AES Corporation)
• Inventors: Defay, Emmanuel
• Application Number:
  US11/336,763
• Publication Number:
  US 20060170073A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/532
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 4/12 Ceramic dielectrics H01G4/085 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 4/20 using combinations of dielectrics from more than one of groups H01G4/02 - H01G4/06 H01G4/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 4/33 Thin- or thick-film capacitors thin- or thick-film circuits H01L27/00; capacitors without a potential-jump or surface barrier specially adapted for integrated circuits, details thereof, multistep manufacturing processes therefor H01L28/40

Abstract

The capacitor is a thin-film capacitor comprising two metal electrodes separated by a dielectric. The dielectric is formed by superposition of at least two sub-layers of preferably perovskite-based dielectric material. Two adjacent superposed dielectric sub-layers are separated by an electrically insulated metal intermediate layer, for example made of platinum. Using very thin dielectric sub-layers, preferably with a thickness of less than 20 nm, separated from one another by metal intermediate layers enables the increase of the breakdown field and the reduction of the leakage currents linked to a reduction of the thickness of the dielectric to be transposed to the level of the capacitor, while preserving a reasonable working field.

Claims

1. Thin-film capacitor comprising two electrodes separated by a dielectric formed by superposition of at least two sub-layers of dielectric material, two adjacent superposed dielectric sub-layers being separated by an electrically insulated metal intermediate layer, capacitor wherein the dielectric material has a dielectric constant greater than 50 and a breakdown field which increases greatly below a certain thickness.

2. Capacitor according to claim 1, wherein the dielectric material is perovskite-based and each sub-layer of dielectric material has a thickness smaller than or equal to 50 nm.

3. Capacitor according to claim 2, wherein each sub-layer of dielectric material has a thickness of about 20 nm.

4. Capacitor according to claim 2, wherein each metal intermediate layer has a thickness less than or equal to 20 nm.

5. Capacitor according to claim 2, wherein the metal intermediate layers are made of platinum.

6. Capacitor according to claim 2, wherein the metal intermediate layers are made of gold.