Laser doping for microelectronics and microtechnology

ABSTRACT The future CMOS generations for microelectronics will require advanced doping techniques capable to realize ultra-shallow, highly-doped junctions with abrupt profiles. Recent experiments have shown the potential capabilities of laser processing of Ultra Shallow Junctions (USJ). According to the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors, two laser processes are able to reach ultimate predictions: laser thermal processing or annealing (LTP or LTA) and Gas Immersion Laser Doping (GILD). Both processes are based on rapid melting/solidification of the substrate. During solidification, the liquid silicon, which c ontains the dopants, is formed epitaxia lly from the underlying crystalline silicon. In the case of laser thermal annealing dopants are implanted before laser processing. GILD skips the ion-implantation step: in this case dopants are chemisorbed on the Si surface before the laser shot. The dopants are then incorporated and activated during the laser proce ss. Activation is limited to the liquid layer an d this chemisorption/laser shot cycle can be repeated until the desired concentration is reached. In this paper, we investigate the possibilities and limitations of the GILD technique for two different substrat es: silicon bulk and SOI. We also show so me laser doping applications for the fabrication of micro and nanoresonators , widely used in the MEMS Industry. Keywords: laser doping, ultra shallow junctions, impl antation, micro resonator, MEMS, LTP, GILD.