CVD Products - Applications

APPLICATIONS    MATERIALS    SYSTEMS

Genus' CVD is primarily used in three structures found in semiconductors:

• Gate stacks: (Also referred to as word-line applications). A gate is an element of a transistor, through which a positive electrical charge may flow in order to attract negatively charged electrons from the substrate and thereby turn on a circuit. A gate structure requires the use of insulating materials to prevent leakage of the electron flow.
  
  
• Interconnects: (Also referred to as bit line applications). In this case, "local" interconnects are the wiring that connects all of the nearby functional components within integrated circuits (ICs). Longer interconnects consist of barrier films, and films deposited on top of the barrier films that become the "bulk" interconnect film that carries electrons.
  
  
• Plugs: These are like interconnects, but aid in vertically connecting various levels in the integrated circuits.

Gate stacks and interconnects: The faster the current moves through these components, the faster the chip performs in general. Using CVD in the conductive layers of a chip helps to increase the speed of the chip. This is because CVD of tungsten silicide creates low resistance conductivity layers for poly-silicon lines. Low resistivity layers allow for a faster conductance path than would be achieved by the normally doped poly-silicon lines alone.

Plugs: Another frequently used CVD application is tungsten metalization or what is referred to as "plug" applications. Tungsten plugs are the vertical conductive layer (plug) used to connect one horizontal layer of conductors on a chip with another horizontal layer of conductors on a chip. CVD is used to deposit plugs because CVD demonstrates excellent "step coverage." Step coverage is the ability of a deposited film to uniformly coat a geometric structure such as a trench, without pinholes or cracks in the film that can lead to chip failure.