IP Library Granted Patent US 12,004,354
Granted Patent B2
US 12,004,354 · App. 17/235,343 · Granted Jun 4, 2024

Memory arrays comprising vertically-alternating tiers of insulative material and memory cells and methods of forming a memory array comprising memory cells individually comprising a transistor and a capacitor

Inventor: Durai Vishak Nirmal Ramaswamy (Boise, ID)
Assignee: Micron Technology, Inc.
H10B53/20H01L23/528H01L27/0688H01L28/60H01L28/90H01L29/0847H01L29/1037H10B12/03H10B12/05H10B12/30H10B12/48H10B41/27H10B41/35H10B41/41H10B43/27H10B43/35H10B51/20H01L21/02164H01L21/31111H01L21/76802H01L21/76877H10B51/10H10B51/30H10B53/10H10B53/30
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,004,354
App. No.
17/235,343
Granted
Jun 4, 2024
Kind
B2
Abstract

A memory array comprises vertically-alternating tiers of insulative material and memory cells, with the memory cells individually comprising a transistor comprising first and second source/drain regions having a channel region there-between and a gate operatively proximate the channel region. At least a portion of the channel region is horizontally-oriented for horizontal current flow in the portion between the first and second source/drain regions. A capacitor of the memory cell comprises first and second electrodes having a capacitor insulator there-between. The first electrode is electrically coupled to the first source/drain region. A horizontal longitudinally-elongated sense line is in individual of the memory-cell tiers. Individual of the second source/drain regions of individual of the transistors that are in the same memory-cell tier are electrically coupled to the horizontal longitudinally-elongated sense line in that individual tier of memory cells. A capacitor-electrode structure extends elevationally through the vertically-alternating tiers. Individual of the second electrodes of individual of the capacitors are electrically coupled to the elevationally-extending capacitor-electrode structure. An access-line pillar extends elevationally through the vertically-alternating tiers. The gate of individual of the transistors in different of the memory-cell tiers comprises a portion of the elevationally-extending access-line pillar. Other embodiments, including method, are disclosed.

Claims (26)

1. A memory array comprising vertically-alternating tiers of insulative material and memory cells, the memory cells individually comprising:

 a transistor comprising first and second source/drain regions having a channel region there-between, at least a portion of the channel region being horizontally-oriented for horizontal current flow in the portion between the first and second source/drain regions; and

 a capacitor comprising first and second electrodes having a capacitor insulator there-between, the first electrode being electrically coupled to the first source/drain region, the second capacitor electrodes of multiple of the capacitors in the array being electrically coupled with one another;

a pair of laterally-spaced access-line pillars extending elevationally through the vertically-alternating tiers on opposite sides of individual ones of the channel regions that are in different ones of the memory-cell tiers, portions of the access-line pillars in the different memory-cell tiers comprising a pair of gates on the opposite sides of the individual channel regions of individual ones of the transistors in the different memory-cell tiers;

a sense line electrically coupled to individual ones of multiple of the second source/drain regions;

the individual transistors comprising a gate insulator that is laterally between the gate and the channel region, the gate insulator being laterally between and separating the gate and the first source/drain region from physically contacting one another, the gate insulator being laterally between and separating the gate and the second source/drain region from physically contacting one another; and

the first and second source/drain regions each have a vertical side that is directly against both of the channel region and the gate insulator, a greater quantity of each of the vertical sides of the first and second source/drain regions being directly against the gate insulator than is directly against the channel region.

2. The array of claim 1 comprising a horizontally-extending conductive strap that directly electrically couples the pair of access-line pillars together.

3. The array of claim 2 comprising a horizontal longitudinally-elongated conductive line directly electrically coupled to the conductive strap of multiple of the pairs of access-line pillars.

4. The array of claim 2 wherein the conductive strap is above the pair of access-line pillars.

5. The array of claim 4 comprising a horizontal longitudinally-elongated conductive line directly electrically coupled to the conductive strap of multiple of the pairs of access-line pillars.

6. A memory array comprising vertically-alternating tiers of insulative material and memory cells, the memory cells individually comprising:

 a transistor comprising first and second source/drain regions having a channel region there-between, at least a portion of the channel region being horizontally-oriented for horizontal current flow in the portion between the first and second source/drain regions; and

 a capacitor comprising first and second electrodes having a capacitor insulator there-between, the first electrode being electrically coupled to the first source/drain region, the second capacitor electrodes of multiple of the capacitors in the array being electrically coupled with one another;

a pair of laterally-spaced access-line pillars extending elevationally through the vertically-alternating tiers on opposite sides of individual ones of the channel regions that are in different ones of the memory-cell tiers, portions of the access-line pillars in the different memory-cell tiers comprising a pair of gates on the opposite sides of the individual channel regions of individual ones of the transistors in the different memory-cell tiers;

a sense line electrically coupled to individual ones of multiple of the second source/drain regions along a y-direction;

a conductive strap that is longitudinally-elongated along the y-direction, the conductive strap directly electrically coupling the pair of access-line pillars together; and

two conductive lines that are longitudinally-elongated along an x-direction that is orthogonal to the y-direction, one of the two conductive lines directly electrically coupling together a first series of the conductive straps of multiple of the pairs of access-line pillars that alternate relative to one another along the x-direction, the other of the two conductive lines directly electrically coupling together a second series of the conductive straps of multiple of the pairs of access-line pillars that alternate relative to one another and to the first series of the conductive straps along the x-direction.

7. A memory array comprising vertically-alternating tiers of insulative material and memory cells, the memory cells individually comprising:

 a transistor comprising first and second source/drain regions having a channel region there-between, at least a portion of the channel region being horizontally-oriented for horizontal current flow in the portion between the first and second source/drain regions; and

 a capacitor comprising first and second electrodes having a capacitor insulator there-between, the first electrode being electrically coupled to the first source/drain region, the second capacitor electrodes of multiple of the capacitors in the array being electrically coupled with one another;

a pair of laterally-spaced access-line pillars extending elevationally through the vertically-alternating tiers on opposite sides of individual ones of the channel regions that are in different ones of the memory-cell tiers, portions of the access-line pillars in the different memory-cell tiers comprising a pair of gates on the opposite sides of the individual channel regions of individual ones of the transistors in the different memory-cell tiers;

a sense line electrically coupled to individual ones of multiple of the second source/drain regions;

a conductive strap above the pair of access-line pillars that is longitudinally-elongated and directly electrically couples the pair of access-line pillars together;

a conductive line above the conductive strap that is longitudinally-elongated along an x-direction and that directly electrically couples to the conductive strap of multiple of the pairs of access-line pillars; and

a conductive line below the conductive line that is above the conductive strap and that is longitudinally-elongated along a y-direction that is orthogonal to the x-direction, the conductive line that is longitudinally-elongated in the y-direction directly electrically coupling together individual ones of the second capacitor electrodes.

Continuity (3)
Division 16016809 · Jun 25, 2018
Provisional Application 62526843 · Jun 29, 2017
Related Publication 20210242226A1 · Aug 5, 2021