In-line high-k/metal gate monitoring using picosecond ultrasonics

摘要

The pursuit of Moore's law has dictated the scaling of semiconductor devices and has led to successful shrink of device form structures while delivering significant transistor performance improvements. In order to keep pace with the need for improved performance, new materials and new process integration schemes have been developed. High-K/ metal gate technology, introduced by Intel to replace the conventional oxide gate dielectric and polysilicon gate, has truly revolutionized transistor technology more than any other change over the last 40 years. First introduced at the 45nm node, this complex process has now been adopted for advanced nodes as the primary approach to address gate leakage and the reduction in gate capacitance due to poly Si gate electrode depletion issues.