A self-aligned silicide process utilizing ion implants for reduced silicon consumption and control of the silicide formation temperature

Abstract

We propose a modified self-aligned silicide (salicide) process that uses Ge implantation and a silicon cap to reduce the silicon substrate consumption by 75% as compared with a conventional salicide process. We have used Ge implants to increase the cobalt disilicide formation temperature. This forces the cobalt to react primarily with a deposited silicon cap, thus minimizing consumption from the silicon substrate. We expect this process to be useful for making silicide on shallow junctions and thin SOI films, where silicon consumption is constrained.