US 12,444,603 B2
Smooth titanium nitride layers and methods of forming the same
Sung-Hoon Jung, Santa Clara, CA (US); Niloy Mukherjee, San Ramon, CA (US); Hee Seok Kim, Seongnam (KR); Kyu Jin Choi, Seongnam (KR); Moonsig Joo, Suwon (KR); Hae Young Kim, San Jose, CA (US); Yoshikazu Okuyama, Santa Cruz, CA (US); Nariman Naghibolashrafi, San Jose, CA (US); Bunsen B. Nie, Fremont, CA (US); and Somilkumar J. Rathi, San Jose, CA (US)
Assigned to Eugenus, Inc., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed by Eugenus, Inc., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed on Feb. 15, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/169,684.
Application 18/169,684 is a continuation of application No. 16/595,952, filed on Oct. 8, 2019, granted, now 11,587,784.
Prior Publication US 2023/0395369 A1, Dec. 7, 2023
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. H01L 21/02 (2006.01); C23C 16/34 (2006.01); C23C 16/455 (2006.01); H01L 21/28 (2025.01)
CPC H01L 21/0228 (2013.01) [C23C 16/45527 (2013.01); H01L 21/02211 (2013.01); H01L 21/0254 (2013.01); H01L 21/28194 (2013.01); C23C 16/34 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of forming a thin film comprising titanium nitride (TiN), the method comprising:
providing a semiconductor substrate comprising a non-metallic surface;
forming on the non-metallic surface a seed layer comprising a TiSiN layer by thermal atomic layer deposition (ALD) without aid of a plasma; and
forming on the seed layer and in situ in a same chamber a TiN layer by thermal ALD without aid of a plasma,
wherein forming the seed layer comprises alternatingly exposing the semiconductor substrate to one or more cycles, each of the one or more cycles comprising an exposure to a Si precursor, an exposure to a Ti precursor following the exposure to the Si precursor without an intervening exposure to a N precursor, and an exposure to a N precursor following the exposure to the Ti precursor without an intervening exposure to a Si precursor, thereby forming the TiSiN layer,
wherein the seed layer is distinct from the TiN layer and has a thickness of about 0.5 nm to about 5 nm, and
wherein a thickness ratio of the TiN layer to the seed layer exceeds 5.