Semiconductor device comprising a lattice matching layer

• US 7,718,996 B2
• Filed: 02/21/2007
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Atomera Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Mears Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Dukovski, Ilija, Halilov, Samed, Hytha, Marek, Mears, Robert J., Huang, Xiangyang, Yiptong, Jean Augustin Chan Sow Fook, Stephenson, Robert John
• Primary Examiner(s): Louie; Wai-Sing
• Assistant Examiner(s): TANG, SUIAN
• Application Number:
  US11/677,098
• Publication Number:
  US 20070194298A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,182 Days
• Field of Search: 257/15, 257/55, 257/347, 257/411, 257613-616, 257635-636, 438/149, 438/752, 438933-938
• US Class Current: 257/28
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0237 Materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02381 Silicon, silicon germanium, germanium
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02439 Materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0245 Silicon, silicon germanium, germanium
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02488 Insulating materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02499 Monolayers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02507 Alternating layers, e.g. superlattice
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0251 Graded layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02521 Materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02532 Silicon, silicon germanium, germanium
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/28194 by deposition, e.g. evaporation, ALD, CVD, sputtering, laser deposition H01L21/28202 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/28255 the insulator being formed after the semiconductor body, the semiconductor belonging to Group IV and not being elemental silicon, e.g. Ge, SiGe, SiGeC
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/1079 with insulated gate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/1083 with an inactive supplementary region, e.g. for preventing punch-through, improving capacity effect or leakage current
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/152 with quantum effects only in vertical direction, i.e. layered structures with quantum effects solely resulting from vertical potential variation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/155 Comprising only semiconductor materials H01L29/154 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/51 Insulating materials associated therewith for MIS structures on thin film semiconductor H01L29/4908
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/513 the variation being perpendicular to the channel plane
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/78 with field effect produced by an insulated gate H01L29/7725, H01L29/775, H01L29/778 take precedence

Abstract

A semiconductor device may include a first monocrystalline layer comprising a first material having a first lattice constant. A second monocrystalline layer may include a second material having a second lattice constant different than the first lattice constant. The device may also include a lattice matching layer between the first and second monocrystalline layers and comprising a superlattice. The superlattice may include a plurality of groups of layers, and each group of layers may include a plurality of stacked semiconductor monolayers defining a semiconductor base portion and at least one non-semiconductor monolayer thereon. The at least one non-semiconductor monolayer may be constrained within a crystal lattice of adjacent base semiconductor portions, and at least some semiconductor atoms from opposing base semiconductor portions may be chemically bound together through the at least one non-semiconductor monolayer therebetween.

Claims

1. A semiconductor device comprising:

a first monocrystalline layer comprising a first material having a first lattice constant;

a second monocrystalline layer comprising a second material having a second lattice constant different than the first lattice constant; and

a lattice matching layer between said first and second monocrystalline layers and comprising a superlattice;

said superlattice comprising a plurality of groups of layers, and at least one group of layers comprising a plurality of stacked semiconductor monolayers defining a semiconductor base portion and at least one non-semiconductor monolayer thereon;

the at least one non-semiconductor monolayer being constrained within a crystal lattice of adjacent base semiconductor portions, and at least some semiconductor atoms from opposing base semiconductor portions being chemically bound together through the at least one non-semiconductor monolayer therebetween.

2. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein said first and second lattice constants are different by not more than ten percent.

3. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein said first material comprises a semiconductor selected from the group consisting of Group IV semiconductors, Group III-V semiconductors, and Group II-VI semiconductors.

4. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein said second material comprises a semiconductor selected from the group consisting of Group IV semiconductors, Group III-V semiconductors, and Group II-VI semiconductors.

5. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein said first material comprises silicon;

and wherein said second material comprises germanium.

6. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein said second monocrystalline layer comprises a semiconductor with at least one active region therein.

7. The semiconductor device of claim 6 wherein said at least one active region comprises spaced apart source and drain regions defining a channel region therebetween.

8. The semiconductor device of claim 7 further comprising a gate overlying said channel region.

9. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein each base semiconductor portion comprises silicon.

10. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein each base semiconductor portion comprises a base semiconductor selected from the group consisting of Group IV semiconductors, Group III-V semiconductors, and Group II-VI semiconductors.

11. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein each non-semiconductor monolayer comprises oxygen.

12. The semiconductor device of claim 1 wherein each non-semiconductor monolayer comprises a non semiconductor selected from the group consisting of oxygen, nitrogen, fluorine, and carbon-oxygen.

13. A semiconductor device comprising:

a first monocrystalline layer comprising a first material having a first lattice constant;

a second monocrystalline layer comprising a second material having a second lattice constant different than the first lattice constant; and

a lattice matching layer between said first and second layers and comprising at least one lower semiconductor monolayer adjacent said first monocrystalline layer, at least one upper semiconductor monolayer adjacent said second monocrystalline layer, and at least one non-semiconductor monolayer between said at least one lower and at least one upper semiconductor monolayers;

said at least one non-semiconductor monolayer being constrained within a crystal lattice of adjacent upper and lower semiconductor monolayers, and at least some semiconductor atoms from the at least one upper and at least one lower semiconductor monolayers being chemically bound together through the at least one non-semiconductor monolayer therebetween.

14. The semiconductor device of claim 13 wherein said first and second lattice constants are different by not more than ten percent.

15. The semiconductor device of claim 13 wherein said first and second materials comprise semiconductors selected from the group consisting of Group IV semiconductors, Group III-V semiconductors, and Group II-VI semiconductors.

16. The semiconductor device of claim 13 wherein said first material comprises silicon;

and wherein said second material comprises germanium.

17. The semiconductor device of claim 13 wherein said second monocrystalline layer comprises a semiconductor with at least one active region therein comprising spaced apart source and drain regions therein defining a channel region therebetween.

18. The semiconductor device of claim 17 further comprising a gate overlying said channel region.

19. The semiconductor device of claim 13 wherein said at least one upper and at least one lower semiconductor monolayers comprise silicon.

20. The semiconductor device of claim 13 wherein said at least one non-semiconductor monolayer comprises oxygen.

21. A semiconductor device comprising:

a first monocrystalline layer comprising silicon and having a first lattice constant;

a second monocrystalline layer comprising germanium and having a second lattice constant different than the first lattice constant, said second monocrystalline layer having at least one active region therein; and

a lattice matching layer between said first and second monocrystalline layers and comprising a superlattice;

said superlattice comprising a plurality of groups of layers, and each group of layers comprising a plurality of stacked semiconductor monolayers defining a semiconductor base portion and at least one non-semiconductor monolayer thereon;

the at least one non-semiconductor monolayer being constrained within a crystal lattice of adjacent base semiconductor portions, and at least some semiconductor atoms from opposing base semiconductor portions being chemically bound together through the at least one non-semiconductor monolayer therebetween.

22. The semiconductor device of claim 21 wherein said first and second lattice constants are different by not more than ten percent.

23. The semiconductor device of claim 21 wherein said at least one active region comprises spaced apart source and drain regions defining a channel region therebetween.

24. The semiconductor device of claim 23 further comprising a gate overlying said channel region.

25. The semiconductor device of claim 21 wherein each base semiconductor portion comprises silicon.

26. The semiconductor device of claim 21 wherein each non-semiconductor monolayer comprises oxygen.