THE STRESS ASSISTED EVOLUTION OF POINT AND EXTENDED DEFECTS IN SILICON

As semiconductor devices are scaled to sub-micron dimensions, they are becoming more complex in geometry and materials. Stress related probl ems are therefore pervasive and critical in ultralarge scale integrate d technology. High levels of stress can cause severe degradation of de vice characteristics by generating and propagating dislocations in the silicon substrate. Furthermore, stress in the silicon substrate can c ause dopant redistribution to an extent it can no longer be neglected when designing scaled devices. In this study the effect of stress, gen erated from patterned nitride stripes on silicon, on the diffusion of phosphorus and evolution of ion-implanted dislocation loops is investi gated. Phosphorus displays retarded diffusion, while the dislocation l oops are smaller and less dense in the compressive regions under the n itride film. (C) 1997 American institute of Physics.