Silicided polysilicon spacer for enhanced contact area

1. An integrated circuit device having increased source/drain contact area comprising:

a transistor device having a gate conductor including conductive polysilicon sidewall spacers, said conductive polysilicon sidewall spacers having a reduced height of less than fifty percent of said gate conductor height;

including a dielectric spacer between said gate conductor and said conductive polysilicon sidewall spacers, wherein said dielectric spacer is selected from nitride or a low dielectric constant material such as SiCOH; and

having a continuous conductive surface silicide layer on said conductive polysilicon sidewall spacers having said reduced height and over deep source and drain regions to extend said source/drain contact area.

2. A method to increase source/drain contact area of an integrated circuit transistor which is applicable to a silicon substrate having isolation structures, said method comprising:

forming a gate structure on said silicon substrate having a gate conductor, shallow trench isolation structures, and ion implantations comprising the steps;

forming a pad oxide layer on said silicon substrate;

forming a pad nitride layer on said pad oxide layer;

patterning said nitride layer to form a shallow trench isolation structure;

stripping said nitride layer using a hot phosphoric acid process;

performing an ion implantation process for a well and a voltage threshold region of said gate structure, wherein said gate structure is subjected to rapid thermal annealing after said ion implantation;

stripping said pad oxide;

forming a gate dielectric;

depositing a gate polysilicon layer;

planarizing and patterning said gate polysilicon layer;

etching said gate polysilicon layer to form said gate conductor;

forming extension ion implants extending from said gate conductor;

depositing an etch-stop oxide layer;

forming nitride spacers adjacent said gate conductor sides;

forming conductive polysilicon spacers along side of said nitride spacers and adjacent each side of said gate conductor sides;

performing a source/drain ion implantation process;

shortening said conductive polysilicon spacers by etching such that at least one of said conductive polysilicon spacers is at a height less than a height of said adjacent gate conductor, wherein said height of said at least one conductive polysilicon spacer is thirty percent, fifty percent, or seventy percent of said gate conductor height

performing an oxide etch to remove said etch-stop oxide layer and expose said gate conductor and said source/drain ion implantation regions;

performing a selective epitaxial silicon deposition; and

forming a conductive silicide on said exposed gate conductor, on said shortened conductive polysilicon spacers and on said exposed source/drain ion implantation regions to extend said source/drain contact area.