IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,266,710
Granted Patent B2
US 12,266,710 · App. 17/518,015 · Granted Apr 1, 2025

Thin film structure, semiconductor device including the same, and semiconductor apparatus including semiconductor device

Inventors: Dukhyun Choe (Suwon-si, KR); Jinseong Heo (Seoul, KR); Taehwan Moon (Suwon-si, KR); Sanghyun Jo (Seoul, KR)
Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
H01L29/516H01L29/42392H01L29/78391H01L29/78618
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,266,710
App. No.
17/518,015
Granted
Apr 1, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

Provided are a thin film structure, a semiconductor device including the thin film structure, and a semiconductor apparatus including the semiconductor device. The thin film structure includes a substrate, and a ferroelectric layer on the substrate. The ferroelectric layer includes a compound having fluorite structure, in which a <001> crystal direction is aligned in a normal direction of a substrate, and having an orthorhombic phase and including fluorine. The ferroelectric layer may have ferroelectricity.

Claims (67)

1. A thin film structure comprising:

a substrate; and

a ferroelectric layer on the substrate and comprising a compound having a fluorite structure in which a <001> crystal direction is aligned along a normal direction of the substrate, the ferroelectric layer having an orthorhombic phase and comprising fluorine,

wherein an uppermost atomic layer of the ferroelectric layer includes fluorine.

2. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer comprises the compound having the fluorite structure where a <001> crystal direction is a dominant ratio in the ferroelectric layer.

3. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer comprises the compound having the fluorite structure where crystal grains having a <001> crystal direction aligned along a normal direction of the substrate in an amount of about 20 weight % or more in the ferroelectric layer.

4. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer has ferroelectricity.

5. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein an amount of the orthorhombic phase in the compound having the fluorite structure is at least about 50%.

6. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer comprises a compound fluorite structure represented by Formula 1:

MO 2-ε F α X β   Formula 1

wherein, in Formula 1, M is Hf, Zr, or a combination of Hf and Zr, X is O, N, H, or a combination of O, N, or H, 0<α≤1 and 0≤β≤1, wherein the sum of α and β is about 1 or less, and 0≤ε≤1.

7. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer further comprises a dopant material selected from the group including C, Si, Ge, Sn, Pb, Al, Y, La, Gd, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, Ti.

8. The thin film structure of claim 7 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer comprises the compound having the fluorite structure represented by Formula 1, wherein an amount of the dopant material is in a range of greater than 0 atom % (at %) to about 20 at % of an amount of M:

MO 2-ε F α X β   Formula 1

wherein, in Formula 1, M is Hf, Zr, or a combination of Hf and Zr, X is O, N, H, or a combination of O, N, or H, 0<α≤1 and 0≤β≤1, wherein the sum of a and B is about 1 or less, and 0≤ε≤1.

9. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein a thickness of the ferroelectric layer is in a range of about 0.1 nm or more to about 10 nm or less.

10. The thin film structure of claim 1 ,

wherein the ferroelectric layer comprises a first region and a second region,

the first region comprises a first compound having the fluorite structure represented by Formula 1-1, and

the second region comprises a second compound having the fluorite structure represented by Formula 1-2:

MO 2-ζ F γ1 X γ2   Formula 1-1

MO 2-η F δ1 X δ2   Formula 1-2

wherein, in Formulae 1-1 and 1-2, M is Hf, Zr, or a combination of Hf and Zr; X is O, N, H, or a combination of O, N, or H; 0<γ1≤1 and 0≤γ2≤1, wherein the sum of γ1 and γ2 is about 1 or less, and 0≤ζ≤1; 0≤δ1≤1 and 0≤δ2≤1, wherein the sum of δ1 and δ2 is about 1 or less, and 0≤η≤1; And γ1 and δ1 are different from each other.

11. The thin film structure of claim 10 ,

wherein γ1>δ1.

12. The thin film structure of claim 10 ,

wherein δ1 is about 0.1 or less, and γ1 is in a range of about 0.1 or more to about 0.95 or less.

13. The thin film structure of claim 10 ,

wherein at least one of

the second region is between the substrate and the first region,

or the first region is located the substrate and the second region.

14. A semiconductor device comprising the thin film structure of claim 1 ; and

at least one active or passive device.

15. The semiconductor device of claim 14 comprising:

a first electrode; and

a second electrode apart from the first electrode,

wherein the ferroelectric layer is between the first electrode and the second electrode, and

at least one of the first electrode or the second electrode corresponds to the substrate.

16. The semiconductor device of claim 15 , further comprising:

a dielectric layer comprising a paraelectric material.

17. The semiconductor device of claim 16 ,

wherein the dielectric layer is between the ferroelectric layer and the substrate.

18. The semiconductor device of claim 15 ,

wherein one of the first electrode and the second electrode comprises a semiconductor material.

19. The semiconductor device of claim 18 ,

wherein the one of the first electrode and the second electrode comprising a semiconductor material comprises a source and a drain.

20. A semiconductor apparatus comprising the semiconductor device of claim 14 ; and

at least one active or passive device.

21. A transistor comprising:

a substrate;

a source/drain region in the substrate; and

a ferroelectric layer on the substrate and between the source/drain region, the ferroelectric layer comprising a fluorine compound in an orthorhombic phase, the fluorine compound being a compound in which a <001> crystal direction is aligned along a normal direction of the substrate, wherein an uppermost atomic layer of the ferroelectric layer includes fluorine.

22. The transistor of claim 21 , further comprising:

a halo region in the substrate, the halo region having a conductivity type opposite to a conductivity type of the source/drain region.

23. The transistor of claim 22 , wherein a concentration of impurities in the halo region is less than a concentration of impurities in the source/drain region.

24. The transistor of claim 21 , further comprising:

a gate electrode on the ferroelectric layer, wherein

a thickness of the gate electrode is less than a thickness of the ferroelectric layer.

25. The thin film structure of claim 1 , wherein at least one orthorhombic unit cell of the orthorhombic is arranged in the <001> crystal direction with a fluorite structure consisting of one element of a metal and two elements of fluorine.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 8, 2021
From: CHOE, DUKHYUN; HEO, JINSEONG; MOON, TAEHWAN; JO, SANGHYUN
To: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 058331/0940 →
Priority Claims (1)
KR 10-2021-0072980 · Jun 4, 2021 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20220393016A1 · Dec 8, 2022
References Cited (46)
US 5621681A · Moon · 1997 [cited by examiner]
US 8877520B2 · Kijima et al. · 2014 [cited by applicant]
US 20040112870A1 · Lee · 2004 [cited by examiner]
US 20060141703A1 · Kang · 2006 [cited by examiner]
US 20060157691A1 · Lee · 2006 [cited by examiner]
US 20060175653A1 · Joo · 2006 [cited by examiner]
US 20060208248A1 · Lee · 2006 [cited by examiner]
US 20070221986A1 · Kang · 2007 [cited by examiner]
US 20070278481A1 · Lee · 2007 [cited by examiner]
US 20080248330A1 · Joo · 2008 [cited by examiner]
US 20130192878A1 · Kijima · 2013 [cited by examiner]
US 20140070289A1 · Tanaka · 2014 [cited by examiner]
US 20140070290A1 · Inumiya · 2014 [cited by examiner]
US 20150183190A1 · Kijima · 2015 [cited by examiner]
US 20160005961A1 · Ino · 2016 [cited by examiner]
US 20160308070A1 · Chang · 2016 [cited by examiner]
US 20170103988A1 · Nishida · 2017 [cited by examiner]
US 20170162702A1 · Hu · 2017 [cited by examiner]
US 20180166582A1 · Liao · 2018 [cited by examiner]
US 20190074295A1 · Schröder · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20190198617A1 · Li · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20190198673A1 · Liu · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20190355584A1 · Yamaguchi · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20200105770A1 · Yoo · 2020 [cited by examiner]
US 20200105897A1 · Hsu · 2020 [cited by examiner]
US 20210005728A1 · Cheng · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210028180A1 · Yamaguchi · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210272970A1 · Lee · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210280720A1 · Lee · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210399135A1 · Polakowski · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20220140147A1 · Choe et al. · 2022 [cited by applicant]
US 20220208990A1 · Young · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 20220344359A1 · Ali · 2022 [cited by examiner]
JP 2005135974A · 2005 [cited by applicant]
JP 2011029399A · 2011 [cited by applicant]
JP 5891490B2 · 2016 [cited by applicant]
JP 6661197B2 · 2020 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020110078180A · 2011 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020220060450A · 2022 [cited by applicant]
Tao et al: “Improved subthreshold swing of MoS2 negative-capacitance transistor by fluorine-plasma treatment on ferroelectric gate dielectric”, [cited by applicant]
Lederer et al: “Local crystallographic phase detection and texture mapping in ferroelectric Zr doped Hf02films by transmission-EBSDrr,” [cited by applicant]
EESR dated Oct. 24, 2022 for corresponding EP Patent Application No. 22176154.7. [cited by applicant]
Wenjuan Lu, et al. “A first-principles study of interfacial fluorination at the HfO2/Al2O3 interface in charge trapping memory devices,” Journal of Applied Physics, No. 125, pp. 215303-215303-9 (2019). [cited by applicant]
Bendjedid A. et al: “Structural, electronic, bonding and thermo-elastic properties of orthorhombic and cubic CeO 2 compound”, Chinese Journal of Physics., vol. 54, No. 1, Feb. 1, 2016 (Feb. 1, 2016), pp. 1-11, XP0931943… [cited by applicant]
Gerward L et al: “Bulk modulus of CeO″2 and PrO″2—An experimental and theoretical study”, Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Elsevier Sequoia, Lausanne, CH, vol. 400, No. 1-2, Sep. 1, 2005 (Sep. 1, 2005), pp. 56-61, XP025… [cited by applicant]
European Office Action dated Aug. 16, 2024 issued in European Application No. 22 176 154.7-1211. [cited by applicant]