Three-dimensional memory device having L-shaped word lines and methods of making the same

1. A three-dimensional memory device, comprising:

an alternating stack of L-shaped insulating layers and L-shaped electrically conductive layers located over a top surface of a substrate, wherein each of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers includes a respective horizontally-extending portion and a respective non-horizontally-extending portion;

memory stack structures extending through a memory array region of the alternating stack that includes the horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers, wherein each of the memory stack structures comprises a memory film and a vertical semiconductor channel;

dielectric spacers non-horizontally extending between neighboring pairs of each one of a non-horizontally-extending portion of an L-shaped insulating layer and each one of a non-horizontally-extending portion of an L-shaped electrically conductive layer; and

contact via structures that contact a respective one of the non-horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers;

wherein

the three-dimensional memory device comprises a vertical NAND device located over the substrate;

the L-shaped electrically conductive layers comprise word lines of the vertical NAND device;

the substrate comprises a silicon substrate;

the vertical NAND device comprises an array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings over the silicon substrate;

at least one memory cell in a first device level of the array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings is located over another memory cell in a second device level of the array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings;

the silicon substrate contains an integrated circuit comprising a driver circuit for the memory device located thereon; and

the array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings comprises:

a plurality of semiconductor channels, wherein at least one end portion of each of the plurality of semiconductor channels extends substantially perpendicular to a top surface of the substrate, and

a plurality of charge storage elements, each charge storage element located adjacent to a respective one of the plurality of semiconductor channels.

2. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 1 , wherein each respective non-horizontally-extending portion of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers extends at angle of 60 to 90 degrees with respect to a horizontal direction which is parallel to the top surface of the substrate.

3. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 2 , wherein each respective non-horizontally-extending portion of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers comprise vertically-extending portions.

4. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , wherein each respective horizontally-extending portion has a uniform vertical thickness and each respective vertically-extending portion has a uniform horizontal thickness.

5. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , further comprising a mesa structure located over the substrate, wherein each respective non-horizontally-extending portion of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers is located over a sidewall of the mesa structure.

6. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , wherein the horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers contact a bottom surface of a respective overlying one of the horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers and a top surface of a respective underlying one of the horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers.

7. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , wherein a plurality of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers contacts a sidewall of a respective one of the L-shaped insulating layers and a sidewall of a respective one of the dielectric spacers.

8. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , wherein the contact via structures straddle the respective one of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers and include a respective pair of downward-protruding portions.

9. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 8 , wherein the respective pair of downward-protruding portions contacts a sidewall of one of the dielectric spacers and a sidewall of one of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers.

10. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , further comprising at least one contact level dielectric layer overlying the memory stack structures and the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers, wherein the contact via structures extend through the at least one contact level dielectric layer and wherein the contact via structures have a same height that is greater than a total thickness of the at least one contact level dielectric layer.

11. The three-dimensional memory device of claim 3 , wherein each of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers further comprises a tapered portion which extends in a direction between the vertical and horizontal directions and which connects respective vertically-extending and horizontally-extending portions of the respective L-shaped electrically conductive layers.

12. A method of forming a three-dimensional memory device, comprising:

forming a mesa structure over a substrate;

performing multiple times a set of processing steps comprising a dielectric spacer formation step in which dielectric spacers are formed, an insulating layer deposition step in which an insulating layer is conformally deposited, and a sacrificial material layer deposition step in which a sacrificial material layer is conformally deposited;

removing portions of the insulating layers, the dielectric spacers, and the sacrificial material layers from above a horizontal plane including a top surface of the mesa structure by a planarization process, wherein an alternating stack of L-shaped insulating layers and L-shaped sacrificial material layers is formed over the substrate and on a sidewall of the mesa structure;

forming memory stack structures through a memory array region of the alternating stack that includes the horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped sacrificial material layers, wherein each of the memory stack structures comprises a memory film and a vertical semiconductor channel;

replacing the L-shaped sacrificial material layers with L-shaped electrically conductive layers; and

forming contact via structures on a respective one of vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers;

wherein

the dielectric spacers extend non-horizontally between neighboring pairs of each one of a non-horizontally-extending portion of an L-shaped insulating layer and each one of a non-horizontally-extending portion of an L-shaped electrically conductive layer;

the three-dimensional memory device comprises a vertical NAND device located over the substrate;

the L-shaped electrically conductive layers comprise word lines of the vertical NAND device;

the substrate comprises a silicon substrate;

the vertical NAND device comprises an array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings over the silicon substrate;

at least one memory cell in a first device level of the array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings is located over another memory cell in a second device level of the array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings;

the silicon substrate contains an integrated circuit comprising a driver circuit for the memory device located thereon; and

the array of monolithic three-dimensional NAND strings comprises:

a plurality of semiconductor channels, wherein at least one end portion of each of the plurality of semiconductor channels extends substantially perpendicular to a top surface of the substrate, and

a plurality of charge storage elements, each charge storage element located adjacent to a respective one of the plurality of semiconductor channels.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the sacrificial material layer is deposited directly on horizontal surfaces of the insulating layer within each set of processing steps.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the dielectric spacer is formed by deposition of a continuous dielectric material layer and subsequently removing horizontal portions of the continuous dielectric material layer employing an anisotropic etch process within each set of processing steps.

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein:

each of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers includes a respective horizontally-extending portion having a uniform vertical thickness and a respective vertically-extending portion having a uniform horizontal thickness; and

the dielectric spacers are located between neighboring pairs of a vertically-extending portion of an L-shaped insulating layer and a vertically-extending portion of an L-shaped electrically conductive layer.

16. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

forming at least one contact level dielectric layer over the memory stack structures and the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers; and

forming contact via cavities through the at least one contact level dielectric layer, wherein a respective one of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers is physically exposed at a bottom of each of the contact via cavities, and the contact via structures are formed in the contact via cavities.

17. The method claim 16 , wherein:

a pair of sidewalls of the respective one of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers is physically exposed within each of the contact via cavities;

the contact via structure includes a respective pair of downward-protruding portions that straddles a respective one of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped electrically conductive layers; and

the respective pair of downward-protruding portions contacts a sidewall of one of the dielectric spacers and a sidewall of one of the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers.

18. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

forming a first dielectric wall structure through the vertically-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped sacrificial material layers of the alternating stack; and

forming a second dielectric wall structure through the horizontally-extending portions of the L-shaped insulating layers and the L-shaped electrically conductive layers.