Liner-free tungsten contact
A liner-less tungsten contact is formed on a nickel-tungsten silicide with a tungsten rich surface. A tungsten-containing layer is formed using tungsten-containing fluorine-free precursors. The tungsten-containing layer may act as a glue layer for a subsequent nucleation layer or as the nucleation layer. The tungsten plug is formed by standard processes. The result is a liner-less tungsten contact with low resistivity.
1. A method for forming a liner-free tungsten contact, the method comprising the steps of:
forming a silicide on a conductive region of a semiconductor substrate, the silicide utilizing at least nickel and tungsten, wherein the silicide is formed by depositing a metal layer comprising nickel and tungsten on the conductive region, and performing a thermal annealing process to form the silicide from the metal layer;
forming a dielectric layer on the semiconductor substrate and etching an opening through the dielectric layer over the conductive region;
depositing a tungsten-containing layer on a sidewall of the opening and on the silicide on the conductive region by exposing the sidewall and the silicide to a non-halogen (fluorine-free) organometallic tungsten precursor and a reducing agent thereby depositing a tungsten-containing film on the silicide and at least a portion of the sidewall, wherein the tungsten-containing layer is formed utilizing fluorine-free materials, wherein the tungsten in the tungsten-containing layer makes up at least five atomic percent (5 at. %) of the tungsten-containing layer and no more than thirty atomic percent (30 at. %) of the tungsten-containing layer; and
filling the opening with bulk tungsten to form a contact.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of forming the dielectric layer on the semiconductor substrate occurs prior to the step of forming the silicide on the conductive region and the step of forming the silicide on the conductive region occurs after the step of etching the opening through the dielectric layer over the conductive region.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the tungsten-containing layer acts as a nucleation layer for the bulk tungsten.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising forming a nucleation layer on the tungsten-containing layer prior to filling the opening with bulk tungsten.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the opening through the dielectric layer is one of a circular contact hole, an oval shaped contact hole, or a trench.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the conductive region is a source region or a drain region of a transistor.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal layer comprises a nickel-tungsten alloy.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal layer comprises a first region comprising tungsten and a second region-comprising nickel, wherein the first region and the second region are, at least in part, substantially coplanar.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the thermal annealing process produces a tungsten-rich region at a surface of the silicide.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein a thickness of the tungsten-rich region is less than or equal to about twenty percent (20%) of a thickness of the silicide and a composition of the tungsten-rich region comprises at least fifty percent (50%) of the total tungsten contained in the silicide.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of depositing the tungsten-containing layer on the sidewall of the opening and on the silicide comprises the step of exposing the sidewall and the silicide to a fluorine-free tungsten-containing precursor to form a tungsten-containing film on the silicide and at least a portion of the sidewall.
12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the tungsten-containing layer comprises one or more of tungsten carbide, tungsten carbonitride, and tungsten nitride.
13. A method for forming a liner-free tungsten contact, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a semiconductor substrate with a conductive region;
forming a dielectric layer overlying the semiconductor substrate;
etching an opening through the dielectric layer to expose the conductive region;
forming a silicide on an exposed portion of the conductive region utilizing at least nickel and tungsten, wherein the silicide is formed by depositing a silicon-containing material on the exposed portion of the conductive region, depositing a metal layer comprising nickel and tungsten on the conductive region, and performing a thermal annealing process to form the silicide from the metal layer;
depositing a tungsten-containing layer on a sidewall of the opening and on the silicide, by exposing the sidewall and the silicide to a non-halogen (fluorine-free) organometallic tungsten precursor and a reducing agent thereby depositing a tungsten-containing film on the silicide and at least a portion of the sidewall wherein the tungsten-containing layer is formed utilizing fluorine-free materials, wherein the tungsten contained in the tungsten-containing layer makes up at least five atomic percent (5 at. %) of the tungsten-containing layer and no more than thirty atomic percent (30 at. %) of the tungsten-containing layer; and
filling the opening with bulk tungsten to form the contact.
14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the silicon-containing material is deposited conformally on the exposed portion of the conductive region and at least a portion of a sidewall of the opening through the dielectric layer and wherein the formed silicide covers the exposed portion of the conductive region and at least the portion of the sidewall of the opening through the dielectric layer.
15. The method of claim 13 , wherein the silicide comprises a tungsten-rich region at a surface of the silicide and a thickness of the tungsten-rich region is less than or equal to about twenty percent (20%) of a thickness of the silicide and a composition of the tungsten-rich region comprises at least fifty percent (50%) of the total tungsten contained in the silicide.