Method of fabricating an integrated circuit including hollow isolating trenches and corresponding integrated circuit
View Patent ↗A method is provided for fabricating an integrated circuit. According to the method, hollow isolating trenches are produced within a substrate, and active components are produced in and on active areas of the substrate that are between the trenches. The trenches are produced in an initial phase carried out before production of the active components and a final phase carried out after production of the active components. In the initial phase, trenches are formed in the substrate, and the trenches are filled with a fill material. In the final phase, the active components are encapsulated, accesses are created through the encapsulation material to each filled trench, the fill material is removed through each access, and the opening of each trench is plugged through the corresponding access. Also provided is an integrated that includes hollow isolating trenches within a substrate.
1. A method of fabricating an integrated circuit, said method comprising the steps of:
producing hollow isolating trenches within a substrate; and
producing active components in and on active areas of the substrate that are positioned between the hollow isolating trenches,
wherein the step of producing the hollow isolating trenches comprises the sub-steps of:
before the step of producing the active components, forming trenches in the substrate, and filling the trenches with a fill material; and
after the step of producing the active components, encapsulating the active components in encapsulation material, creating through the encapsulation material an access to each of the trenches, removing the fill material of each of the trenches through the corresponding access, and plugging the opening of each of the trenches through the corresponding access.
2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein each of the accesses to the trenches is a well that is narrower than the width of a top of the corresponding trench.
3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the plugging of the opening of each of the trenches comprises making a conformal deposition of a plugging material in the well.
4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the fill material is a material that can be removed selectively with respect to the material of the substrate and the encapsulation material.
5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the plugging of the opening of each of the trenches comprises making a conformal deposition of a plugging material in the well.
6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the fill material is a material that can be removed selectively with respect to the material of the substrate and the encapsulation material.
7. The method according to claim 6 , wherein the removing of the fill material of each of the trenches comprises selective etching of the fill material.
8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the removing of the fill material of each of the trenches comprises selective etching of the fill material.
9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the fill material is germanium or a silicon-germanium alloy.
10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein at least some of the trenches are shallow trenches.
11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein at least some of the trenches are deep trenches.
12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein at least some of the trenches are deep trenches.