2/11/2017 TheHighkSolutionIEEESpectrum

The High-k Solution

Microprocessorscomingoutthisfallaretheresultofthefirstbigredesignin
CMOStransistorssincethelate1960s

By MARK T. BOHR, ROBERT S. CHAU, TAHIR GHANI AND KAIZAD MISTRY

Posted 1 Oct 2007 | 4:00 GMT

Asyoureadthis,twoofourmostadvancedfabshere
atIntelaregearingupforthecommercialproduction
ofthelatestCore2microprocessors,codenamed
Penryn,duetostartrollingoffthelinesbeforetheyear
isup.Thechips,basedonourlatest45nanometer
CMOSprocesstechnologywillhavemoretransistors
andrunfasterandcoolerthanmicroprocessors
fabricatedwiththeprevious,65nmprocess
generation.Forcomputeintensivemusic,video,and
gamingapplications,userswillseeahefty
performanceincreaseoverthebestchipstheyarenow
using.

Awelcomedevelopmentbuthardlybignews,
right?Afterall,thedensityoftransistorsonchips
hasbeenperiodicallydoubling,aspredictedby
MooresLaw,formorethan40years.Theinitial
Penrynchipswillbeeitherdualcoreprocessors
withmorethan400milliontransistorsorquad
coreprocessorswithmorethan800million
transistors.Youmightthinkthesechipsdont
representanythingotherthanyetanother
checkpointintheinexorablemarchofMoores
Law.

Butyoudbewrong.Thechipswouldnothave
beenpossiblewithoutamajorbreakthroughinthe
wayweconstructakeycomponentofthe
infinitesimaltransistorsonthosechips,calledthe
gatestack.Thebasicproblemwehadtoovercome
wasthatafewyearsagoweranoutofatoms.
Literally.
Advertisement
TokeepontheMooresLawcurve,weneedto
halvethesizeofourtransistorsevery24monthsor
Photo:AaronHewitt
so.Thephysicsdictatesthatthesmallestpartsof
Fromleft:Ghani,Mistry,Chau,andBohrofIntelwithawafer thosetransistorshavetobediminishedbyafactor
of45nanometermicroprocessors
of0.7.Buttheresonecriticalpartofthetransistor
thatwefoundwecouldntshrinkanymore.Itsthe
thinlayerofsilicondioxide(SiO2 )insulationthatelectricallyisolatesthetransistorsgatefromthe
channelthroughwhichcurrentflowswhenthetransistorison.Thatinsulatinglayerhasbeenslimmed
andshrunkwitheachnewgeneration,abouttenfoldsincethemid1990salone.Twogenerationsbefore
Penryn,thatinsulationhadbecomeascantfiveatomsthick.

Wecouldntshaveoffevenonemoretenthofananometerasinglesiliconatomis0.26nmindiameter.
Moreimportant,atathicknessoffiveatoms,theinsulationwasalreadyaproblem,wastingpowerby
lettingelectronsrainthroughit.Withoutasignificantinnovation,thesemiconductorindustrywasin
dangerofencounteringthedreadedshowstopper,thelongawaitedinsurmountableproblemthatends
theMooresLaweraofperiodicexponentialperformancegainsinmemories,microprocessors,andother
chipsandtheverygoodtimesthathavegonewithit.

Thesolutiontothislatestcrisisinvolvedthickeningtheinsulatorwithmoreatoms,butofadifferent
type,togiveitbetterelectricalproperties.Thisnewinsulatorworkswellenoughtohaltthepower
suckinghailofelectronsthatsplaguedadvancedchipsforthepastfouryears.IfMooresLawcrumbles
intheforeseeablefuture,itwontbebecauseofinadequategateinsulation.IntelcofounderGordon
Moore,ofMooresLawfame,calledthealterationswemadeinintroducingthislatestgenerationofchips
thebiggestchangeintransistortechnologysincethelate1960s.

Asdifficultasfindingthenewinsulatorwas,thatwasonlyhalfthebattle.Thepointoftheinsulatoristo
separatethetransistorssilicongatefromtherestofthedevice.Thetroubleis,asilicongatedidntwork
withthenewinsulatormaterial.Theinitialtransistorsmadewiththemperformedworsethanolder
transistors.Theanswerwastoaddyetanothernewmaterialtothemix,swappingthesilicongateforone
madeofmetal.

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Itmaynotseemlikesuchabigdealtochangethematerialsusedinatransistor,butitwas.Theindustry
wentthroughamajorupheavalseveralyearsagowhenitswitchedfromaluminuminterconnectsto
copperonesandatthesametimefromSiO2 claddingforthoseinterconnectstochemicallysimilar
lowkdielectrics.Andthosechangeshadnothingtodowiththetransistoritself.Afundamental
changetothecompositionofthetransistorisprettymuchunheardof.Thecombinationofthegateand
theinsulator,thegatestack,hasntchangedsignificantlysinceMoore,AndrewS.Grove,andothers
describeditinthismagazinebackinOctober1969!

Sowhenyoubootupyournextmachineandyouresurprisedbyhowfastitripsthroughsomevideo
coding,remember:theresmorenewunderitshoodthaninanycomputeryouveeverowned.

Thestoryofhowweandourcoworkerssolvedthegateinsulationproblemmayseemesoteric,andina
literalwayitis.ButitisalsoemblematicofhowMooresLaw,thedefiningparadigmoftheglobal
semiconductorindustry,isbeingsustainedagainstoftendauntingoddsbytheswiftapplicationof
enormousintellectualandmaterialresourcestoproblemsthat,increasingly,areforcingengineersto
struggleinrealmsuntilrecentlyoccupiedonlybyphysicists.

Theproblem,ultimately,isoneofpower.Atfiveatoms,thatsliverofSiO2 insulationwassothin
thatithadbeguntoloseitsinsulatingproperties.Startingwiththegenerationofchipsfabricatedin
2001,electronshadbeguntotricklethroughit.Intheprocessorsmadejusttwoyearslater,thattrickle
becamesome100timesasintense.

Allthatcurrentwasadrainonpowerandasourceofunwantedheat.Laptopswereheatinguptoomuch
anddrainingtheirbatteriestooquickly.Serversweredrivinguptheirownerselectricbillsandtaxing
theirairconditioners.Evenbeforeweranoutofatoms,designershaddevisedsometrickstothrottleback
onthepowerwithoutlosingspeed.Butwithoutawaytostanchtheunwantedflowofelectronsthrough
thatsliverofinsulation,thebattletomakeevermorepowerfulprocessorswouldsoonbelost.

Tounderstandwhy,youneedaquicklesson(orrefresher)insemiconductorbasics.Thetypeoftransistor
thatischainedtogetherbythehundredsofmillionstomakeuptodaysmicroprocessors,memory,and
otherchipsiscalledametaloxidesemiconductorfieldeffecttransistor,orMOSFET.Basically,itisa
switch.Avoltageononeterminal,knownasthegate,turnsonoroffaflowofcurrentbetweenthetwo
otherterminals,thesourceandthedrain[seeillustration,TheTransistor].

MOSFETscomeintwovarieties:N(forntype)MOSandP(forptype)MOS.Thedifferenceisinthe
chemicalmakeupofthesource,drain,andgate.IntegratedcircuitscontainbothNMOSandPMOS
transistors.Thetransistorsareformedonsinglecrystalsiliconwafersthesourceanddrainarebuiltby
dopingthesiliconwithimpuritiessuchasarsenic,phosphorus,orboron.Dopingwithboronadds
positivechargecarriers,calledholes,tothesiliconcrystal,makingitptype,whiledopingwitharsenicor
phosphorusaddselectrons,makingitntype.

TakinganNMOStransistorasanexample,theshallowsourceanddrainregionsaremadeofhighly
dopedntypesilicon.Betweenthemliesalightlydopedptyperegion,calledthetransistorchannel
wherecurrentflows.OntopofthechannelliesthatthinlayerofSiO2 insulation,usuallyjustcalledthe
gateoxide,whichisthecauseofthechipindustrysmostrecenttechnologicalheadaches.

Overlyingthatoxidelayeristhegateelectrode,whichismadeofpartiallyordered,orpolycrystalline,
silicon.InthecaseofanNMOSdeviceitisalsontype.(Thesilicongatesreplacedaluminumgatesthe
metalinmetaloxidesemiconductorinworkdescribedinthe1969IEEESpectrumarticle.Butthe
MOSacronymhasneverthelesslivedon.)

TheNMOStransistorworkslikethis:apositivevoltageonthegatesetsupanelectricfieldacrossthe
oxidelayer.Theelectricfieldrepelstheholesandattractselectronstoformanelectronconducting
channelbetweenthesourceandthedrain.

APMOStransistorisjustthecomplementofNMOS.Thesourceanddrainareptypethechannel,n
typeandthegate,ptype.Itworksintheoppositemanneraswell:apositivevoltageonthegate(as
measuredbetweenthegateandsource)cutsofftheflowofcurrent.

Inlogicdevices,PMOSandNMOStransistorsarearrangedsothattheiractionscomplementeachother,
hencethetermCMOSforcomplementarymetaloxidesemiconductor.ThearrangementofCMOScircuits
issuchthattheyaredesignedtodrawpoweronlywhenthetransistorsareswitchingonoroff.Thatsthe
idea,anyway.

AlthoughthebasicfeaturesandmaterialsoftheMOStransistorhavestayedprettymuchthesamesince
thelate1960s,thedimensionshavescaleddramatically.Thetransistorsminimumlayoutdimensions
wereabout10micrometers40yearsago,andarelessthan50nmnow,smallerbyafactorofmorethan
200.Supposea1960stransistorwasasbigasathreebedroomhouseandthatitshrankbythesame
factor.Youcouldholdthehouseinthepalmofyourhandtoday.

InthePenrynprocessorsthatwerecentlybeganfabricating,mostoftheirtransistorsfeaturesmeasure
around45nm,thoughoneisassmallas35nm.Itsthefirstcommercialmicroprocessortohavefeatures
thissmallallothertopofthelinemicroprocessorsinproductionasthisarticleisbeingwrittenhave65
nmfeatures.Inotherwords,Penrynisthefirstofthe45nmgenerationofmicroprocessors.Manymore
willsoonfollow.

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ThethicknessoftheSiO2 insulationonthetransistorsgatehasscaledfromabout100nmdownto1.2
nmonstateoftheartmicroprocessors.Therateatwhichthethicknessdecreasedwassteadyforyears
butstartedtoslowatthe90nmgeneration,whichwentintoproductionin2003.Itwasthenthatthe
oxidehititsfiveatomlimit.Theinsulatorthicknessshranknofurtherfromthe90nmtothe65nm
generationstillcommontoday.

Thereasonthegateoxidewasshrunknofurtheristhatitbegantoleakcurrent[seeillustration,
RunningOutofAtoms].Thisleakagearisesfromquantumeffects.At1.2nm,thequantumnatureof
particlesstartstoplayabigrole.Wereusedtothinkingofelectronsintermsofclassicalphysics,andwe
liketoimagineanelectronasaballandtheinsulationasatallandnarrowhill.Theheightofthehill
representshowmuchenergyyoudneedtoprovidetheelectrontogetittotheotherside.Giveita
sufficientpushandsureenoughyoucouldgetitoverthehill,bustingthroughtheinsulationinthe
process.

Butwhenthehill(theoxidelayer)issonarrowthatyouarecountingindividualatomsofthickness,the
electronlookslesslikeaballandmorelikeawave.Specifically,itsawavethatdefinestheprobabilityof
findingtheelectroninaparticularlocation.Thetroubleisthatthewaveisactuallybroaderthanthehill,
extendingallthewaytotheothersideandbeyond.Thatmeansthereisadistinctprobabilitythatan
electronthatshouldbeonthegatesideoftheoxidecansimplyappearonthechannelside,having
tunneledthroughtheenergybarrierposedbytheinsulationratherthangoingoverit.

Inthemid1990s,weatIntel andothermajorchipmakersrecognizedthatwewerefastapproaching
thedaywhenwewouldnolongerbeabletokeepsqueezingatomsoutoftheSiO2 gateinsulator.Soweall
launchedresearchprogramstocomeupwithabettersolution.Thegoalwastoidentifyagatedielectric
materialasareplacementforSiO2 andalsotodemonstratetransistorprototypesthatleakedlesswhileat
thesametimedrivingplentyofcurrentacrossthetransistorchannel.Weneededagateinsulatorthat
wasthickenoughtokeepelectronsfromtunnelingthroughitandyetpermeableenoughtoletthegates
electricfieldintothechannelsothatitcouldturnonthetransistor.Inotherwords,thematerialhadto
bephysicallythickbutelectricallythin.

Thetechnicaltermforsuchamaterialisahighkdielectrick,thedielectricconstant,isatermthat
referstoamaterialsabilitytoconcentrateanelectricfield.Havingahigherdielectricconstantmeansthe
insulatorcanprovideincreasedcapacitancebetweentwoconductingplatesstoringmorechargeforthe
samethicknessofinsulator.Orifyouprefer,itcanprovidethesamecapacitancewithathickerinsulator
[seeillustration,TheHighkWay ].SiO2 typicallyhasakofaround4,whileairandavacuumhave
valuesofabout1.Thekvalueisrelatedtohowmuchamaterialcanbepolarized.Whenplacedinan
electricfield,thechargesinadielectricsatomsormoleculeswillreorientthemselvesinthedirectionof
thefield.Theseinternalchargesaremoreresponsiveinhighkdielectricsthaninlowkones.

Incidentally,backin2000,leadingsemiconductorfirmsbegantochangethematerialusedtoinsulate
themetalwiresthatconnecttransistorstoeachotherfromSiO2 tolowkdielectrics.Inthecaseof
interconnects,youdonotwanttheelectricfieldfromonewiretobefeltinothernearbywires,becauseit
createsacapacitorbetweenthewiresandcaninterferewithorslowdownthesignalsonthem.Alowk
dielectricpreventstheproblem.

Wesetaboutstudyingaveritablealphabetsoupofhighkdielectriccandidates,includingaluminum
oxide(Al2 O3 ),titaniumdioxide(TiO2 ),tantalumpentoxide(Ta2 O5),hafniumdioxide(HfO2 ),
hafniumsilicate(HfSiO4),zirconiumoxide(ZrO2 ),zirconiumsilicate(ZrSiO4),andlanthanumoxide
(La2 O3 ).Weweretryingtoidentifysuchthingsasthematerialsdielectricconstant,howelectrically
stableitwas,anditscompatibilitywithsilicon.Forquickturnaround,weexperimentedwithsimple
capacitorstructures,buildingasandwichconsistingoftitaniumnitrideelectrodes,thehighkdielectric,
andasilicongateelectrode.Wethenchargedthemupanddischargedthemagainandagain,watching
toseehowmuchtherelationshipbetweencapacitanceandvoltagechangedwitheachcycle.

Butforthefirsttwoyears,allthedielectricswetriedworkedpoorly.Wefoundthatchargesgottrappedat
theinterfacebetweenthegateelectrodeandthedielectric.Thisaccumulatedchargewithinthecapacitor
alteredthevoltagelevelneededtostorethesameamountofenergyinthecapacitorfromonecharge
dischargecycletothenext.Youwantatransistortooperateexactlythesamewayeverytimeitswitches,
butthesegatestackstructuresbehaveddifferentlyeachtimetheywerechargedup.Theresultswerevery
discouraging,buteventuallyourteamgotanimportantbreak.

Itturnedoutthattheproblemlayinhowweconstructedthetestcapacitor.Tomakethedielectriclayer,
wewereusingoneoftwodifferentsemiconductormanufacturingtechniques:reactivesputteringand
metalorganicchemicalvapordeposition.Unfortunately,bothprocessesproducesurfacesthat,though
remarkablysmoothbymoststandards,wereneverthelessunevenenoughtoleavesomegapsandpockets
inwhichchargescouldgetstuck.

Weneededsomethingevensmootherassmoothasasinglelayerofatoms,actually.Soweturnedtoa
technologycalledatomiclayerdeposition,sonewthatitsdebutinCMOSchipproductioncomesonly
thisyearwithournewhighkchips.Atomiclayerdepositionletsyoubuildupamaterialonelayerof
atomsatatime.Inthisprocess,youintroduceagasthatreactswiththesurfaceofthesiliconwafer,
leavingthewholesubstratecoatedinasinglelayerofatoms.Then,becausethereisnomoresurfaceto
reactwith,thedepositionstops.Thegasisevacuatedfromthechamberandreplacedwithasecondgas,
onethatchemicallyreactswiththelayerofatomsjustdeposited.Ittoolaysdownonelayerofatomsand
thenstops.Youcanrepeattheprocessasmanytimesasyouwant,toproducelayeredmaterialswhose
totalthicknessiscontrollabledowntothewidthofasingleatom.

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Depositedinthismanner,boththehafniumandzirconiumbasedhighkdielectricswestudiedshowed
muchmorestableelectricalcharacteristicsincomparisonwiththeonesformedbysputteringorchemical
vapors.Thetrappedchargeproblemseemedtohavebeensmoothedout.

Withtwocandidatematerialsidentified,westartedmakingNMOSandPMOStransistorsoutof
them.Thencamethenextsnag.Thesetransistors,prettymuchidenticaltoourexistingtransistors
exceptforthedifferentdielectric,hadafewproblems.Foronething,ittookmorevoltagetoturnthemon
thanitshouldhavewhatscalledFermilevelpinning.Foranother,oncethetransistorswereon,the
chargesmovedsluggishlythroughthemslowingthedevicesswitchingspeed.Thisproblemisknownas
lowchargecarriermobility.

Wewerenttheonlyonesencounteringtheseproblemsjustabouteverybodyelsewasstrugglingwith
them,too.WiththecountdowninprogressforthenextgenerationpredictedbyMooresLaw,
understandingwhythehighkdielectrictransistorsperformedsopoorlyandfindingasolutionbecame
anurgenttask.Usingacombinationofexperimentalworkandphysicsbasedmodels,webegantofigure
outwhathadgonewrong.Thesourceofthetrouble,ultimately,camedowntotheinteractionbetween
thepolysilicongateelectrodeandthenewhighkdielectrics.

Whythisissohasacomplicatedexplanation.Thedielectriclayerismadeupofdipolesobjectswitha
positivepoleandanegativeone.Thisistheveryaspectthatgivesthehighkdielectricsuchahigh
dielectricconstant.Thesedipolesvibratelikeatautrubberbandandleadtostrongvibrationsina
semiconductorscrystallattice,calledphonons[seeillustration,BumpyRide].Thesephononsknock
aroundpassingelectrons,slowingthemdownandreducingthespeedatwhichthetransistorcanswitch.
Buttheoreticalstudiesandcomputersimulationsperformedbyusandothersshowedawayout.The
simulationsindicatedthattheinfluenceofdipolevibrationsonthechannelelectronscanbescreenedout
bysignificantlyincreasingthedensityofelectronsinthegateelectrode.Onewaytodothatwouldbeto
switchfromapolysilicongatetoametalone.Asaconductor,metalcanpackinhundredsoftimesmore
electronsthansilicon.Experimentsandfurthercomputersimulationsconfirmedthatmetalgateswould
dothetrick,screeningoutthephononsandlettingcurrentflowsmoothlythroughthetransistorchannel.

Whatsmore,thebondbetweenthehighkdielectricandthemetalgatewouldbesomuchbetterthan
thatbetweenthedielectricandthesilicongatethatourotherproblem,Fermilevelpinning,wouldbe
solvedbyametalgateaswell.

Nowourengineershadanewmajorchore:findametaltheycoulduseforthegateelectrodethat
wouldcombinewellwiththenewhighkdielectric.Becausetheelectricalcharacteristicsofthegatesof
NMOSandPMOStransistorsaredifferent,theyactuallyneedednotonemetalbuttwooneforNMOS
andoneforPMOS.

JustasstandardMOStransistorsusentypeandptypepolysilicongatesforNMOSandPMOS
transistors,highktransistorswouldneedmetalgateelectrodematerialswithakeypropertysimilarto
polysilicons.Thiskeypropertyisknownastheworkfunction.Inthiscontext,workfunctionreferstothe
energyofanelectroninthegateelectroderelativetothatofanelectroninthelightlydopedsilicon
channel.Theenergydifferencesetsupanelectricfieldthatcanmodulatetotheamountofvoltageneeded
tobegintoturnthetransistoron,thethresholdvoltage.Unlessthegatesworkfunctionischosenwell,
thethresholdvoltagewillbetoohigh,andthetransistorwillnotturnoneasilyenough.

Weanalyzed,modeled,andexperimentedwithmanytypesofmetals,somewithworkfunctionsthat
morecloselymatchedhighlydopedsiliconthanothers.Butbythemselves,nonehadexactlythework
functionofthedopedsilicon,sowehadtolearntochangetheworkfunctionofmetalstosuitourneeds.
Eventually,theresearchgroupidentifiedNMOSandPMOSmetalsbyfirstbuildingcapacitorsoutof
themandthentransistors.Wecannotdisclosetheexactmakeupofourmetallayers,becauseafterall,the
ICindustryisverycompetitive!

WebuiltourfirstNMOSandPMOShighkandmetalgatetransistorsinmid2003inIntelsHillsboro,
Ore.,developmentfab.WestartedoutusingIntels130nmtechnology,whichwasaboutthreeyearsold
atthetimeandwasusedinhighvolumeproduction.Thetransistors,withahafniumbasedoxideand
metalgateelectrodes,hadeverythingweneeded:theyturnedonattherightvoltage,leakedlittlecurrent
throughthegateoxide,andpassedalargeamountofcurrentthroughthechannelforagivenvoltage.
Andthatcurrentmovedquickly.Infact,foragivenoffstatecurrent,thesefirsttransistorsdrovemore
currentthananytransistorreportedatthetime.

Ofcourse,wewerentalone.Andtherewerestillplentyofunknowns.By2003,researchersin
universitylabsandothersemiconductorfirmsaroundtheworldhadzeroedinonhafniumbased
materialsasthegatedielectric.Avarietyofthemwereunderearneststudy:hafniumoxides,hafnium
silicates,andhafniumoxidescontainingnitrogen.Themethodofformingthehighkfilm,too,was
unsettled,withdifferentgroupstryingsputtering,chemicalvapordeposition,andatomiclayer
deposition,whichweeventuallysettledon.Butthebiggestunknownsatthetimewerewhatmetalgate
materialstouseandhowtofitthemintothetransistormanufacturingprocess.

Thenormalfabricationmethodisknownasgatefirst.Asthenameimplies,thegatedielectricandgate
electrodesareconstructedfirst.Thenthedopantsforthesourceanddrainareimplantedintothesilicon
oneithersideofthegate.Finally,thesiliconisannealedtorepairthedamagefromtheimplantation
process.Thatprocedurerequiresthatthegateelectrodematerialbeabletowithstandthehigh
temperaturesusedintheannealingstepnotaproblemforpolycrystallinesiliconbutpotentiallyabig
oneforsomemetals.

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Tomakealongstoryshort,thesearchforgateelectrodematerialswithboththerightworkfunctionand
tolerancetohightemperatureprocessingwasverydifficultandfullofdeadends.Especiallyforthe
PMOStransistor.

Anothertransistorprocesssequence,dubbedgatelast,circumventsthethermalannealingrequirement
bydepositingthegateelectrodematerialsafterthesourceanddrainareformed.However,manyofour
peerssawthegatelastprocess,whichweultimatelyadopted,astoomuchofadepartureandtoo
challenging.

Meanwhile,athirdapproachremarkableinitssimplicityemerged.Calledfullysilicidedgates,itletsyou
followthenormalgatefirstprocessbutthenletsyouturnthepolysilicongateintoametalsilicidegate,
essentiallyreplacingeveryothersiliconatomwithmetal(usuallynickel).Then,bydopingthenickel
silicide,youcanalteritsworkfunctionforuseineitheranNMOSdeviceoraPMOSone.Bylate2006,
though,nearlyeveryone,includingus,hadgivenuponthefullysilicidedgatesapproach.Noonecould
movethesilicidesworkfunctionquitecloseenoughtowhereitneededtobe.

Nevertheless,thesearchgoesonatothermajorchipmakerstofindthematerialswiththerightwork
functionthatcouldsurvivehightemperaturesandenabletheindustrystandardgatefirstprocessflow.

Havingbuiltwellfunctioningtransistorsusingoldtechnology,inthesecondhalfof2003itwas
timetomovefromresearchtodevelopmentofhighkdielectricplusmetalgatetransistors,aswecalled
them.Engineersbeganworkingtodeterminewhethertheseearlytransistorscouldbescaledtothe
upcoming45nmdimensionsandstillmeettherigorousperformance,reliability,andmanufacturability
requirementsofanadvancedmicroprocessortechnology.

Itwasnocakewalk.Theresearchgroupengineershadprovidedacriticalleadinidentifyingpromising
highkandmetalgatematerials,buttheNMOSandPMOStransistorshadnotyetbeencombinedonone
waferastheywouldbeinamicroprocessor,usingamanufacturingprocessthatcouldmakeboth.Whats
more,therewerehardquestionsstilltobeansweredabouthowmanygoodchipswecouldexpectfor
everybadone(yield)andhowreliablethosechipswouldbe.

Duringthemonthsthatfollowed,theteamcrackedoneproblemafteranothermakingchangesto
materials,chemicalrecipes,andmanufacturingprocesses.Itwasntuntillate2004thattheteamfeltit
hadenoughconvincingdatathatthenewtransistorscouldbemadetoworkonour45nmtechnology.At
thatpoint,therewasnoturningback.Intelwasnowcommittedtomakingahighkdielectricplusmetal
gatetransistorstructureusingthegatelastprocessflow.Itwasagutsycall.Ourteamknewitwas
committingallofIntelsnextgenerationofmicroprocessorstothebiggestchangeintransistor
technologyin40years.

Thenextkeymilestonewastodemonstrateworkingtestchipsusingthefinalscaleddimensions
combinedwiththenewtransistorfeatures.Thetraditionalchiptotestanewtechnologyonisstatic
randomaccessmemory,orSRAM,whichisthetypeofmemorycollocatedonthesamechipwiththe
microprocessor.Typically,microprocessormakershavedesignsforSRAMthatareayearormoreahead
oftheirprocessordesigns.SRAMisaveryregulararrayofmemorycells,eachofwhichconsistsofsix
denselypackedandinterconnectedtransistors.Becauseoftheirdensityandregularity,SRAMchips
providegooddataonhowmanydefectsamanufacturingprocessproduces.

OurfirstfullyfunctionaltestSRAMchipswiththenewtransistorscameoffthelineinJanuary2006.
Theywereofa153megabitdesignconsistingofmorethan1billiontransistors.Eachsixtransistor
memorycellinthechipoccupiedlittlemorethanonethirdofasquaremicrometer.Thistestchiphadall
thefeaturesneededtobuilda45nmmicroprocessor,includingthehighkplusmetalgatetransistors
andninelayersofcopperinterconnects.Consideringhownewandradicallydifferentthetransistorand
manufacturingprocesswere,itwasasurpriseeventosomeoftheengineersinthedevelopmentgroup
thatitallworkedtogethersowell.Evenso,thedevelopmentteamstillhadalotaheadofittobringthe
performance,reliability,andyieldoftheprocessuptothelevelneededformanufacturing
microprocessors.

Thenewgatestackworkedwondersinbattlingleakagethroughthegate,reducingitbymorethana
factorof10.Butthegateoxideisnottheonlysourceoftransistorleakagechipmakershavetoworry
about.Theothersignificantleakiscalledsourcetodrainorsubthresholdleakage.Itsatrickleofcurrent
seenevenwhenthetransistorisintendedtobeintheoffstate.Makingtransistorssmallerhasalso
meantsteadilyloweringtheamountofvoltageneededtoturnthemon,thethresholdvoltage.
Unfortunately,steadilyloweringthethresholdvoltageletsmorecurrentslipthrough.Formanyyears,
eachnewgenerationoftransistorwouldincreasedrivecurrent(andimproveperformance)byabout30
percentbutwouldpaythepriceofaboutathreefoldincreaseinsubthresholdleakage.Leakagecurrents
havereachedlevelshighenoughtobeanoticeableportionoftotalmicroprocessorpowerconsumption.

Theindustryisnowinanerawherepowerefficiencyandlowleakagearemoreimportantthanrawspeed
increases.Butatransistorcanbedesignedtooperatetofavoreitherprioritybyadjustingthechannel
lengthoradjustingthethresholdvoltage.Ashorterchannelleaksmorebutallowsforahigherdrive
current.Ahigherthresholdvoltagepinchesofftheleakbutalsothrottlesthedrivecurrent.Adjustingthe
thresholdvoltageiswherethehighkdielectriccomesintoplay.Athickerdielectricreducesthegates
abilitytoopenaconductivechannelbetweenthesourceandthedrain,increasingthethresholdvoltage.
Athinnerdielectriclayerhastheoppositeeffect.Comparedwiththeprevious65nmtransistors,45nm
highkplusmetalgatetransistorsprovideeithera25percentincreaseindrivecurrentatthesame

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subthresholdleakageormorethanafivefoldreductioninleakageatthesamedrivecurrent,oranywhere
betweenthosevalues.Wecanmakethechoiceonaproductbyproductbasis,ordifferentcircuitsonthe
samemicroprocessorchipcanusedifferenttransistorstooptimizeforperformanceorpower.

InJanuary2007,Intelmadethefirstworking45nmmicroprocessorsusingtheserevolutionaryhighk
plusmetalgatetransistors.OnewasthePenryndualcoremicroprocessor,whichhas410million
transistors.DifferentversionsofPenrynwillbeoptimizedformobile,desktop,workstation,andserver
applications.Thequadcoreversionofthisproductwillhave820milliontransistors.Penrynwas
followedafewmonthslaterbySilverthorne,asinglecoremicroprocessorwith47milliontransistorsthat
isdesignedforlowpowerapplications,includingmobileInternetdevicesandultramobilePCs.Thereare
morethan15newchipsunderdevelopmentatIntelusingournewtechnology.ProductionofPenrynand
SilverthornewillstartlaterthisyearatIntelplantsinOregonandArizona.Nextyear,wellstartupthe
processattwootherhighvolumemanufacturingfabs,inNewMexicoandIsrael.

Theinventionofhighkplusmetalgatetransistorswasanimportantbreakthrough.Althoughwecould
havecontinuedtoshrinktransistorstofitthedimensionsneededforthe45nmgenerationwithoutthis
breakthrough,thosetransistorswouldnothaveworkedmuchbetterthantheirpredecessors,andthey
certainlywouldhaveexpendedmorewatts.Wereconfidentthisnewtransistorcanbescaledfurther,and
developmentisalreadywellunderwayonournextgeneration32nmtransistorsusinganimproved
versionofhighkplusmetalgatetechnology.Whetherthistypeoftransistorstructurewillcontinueto
scaletothenexttwogenerations22nmand16nmisaquestionforthefuture.Willweneednew
materialsandnewstructuresagain?

Nobodyknowsforsure.Butthatiswhatmakesintegratedcircuitresearchanddevelopmentsoexciting.

About the Author

MARKT.BOHR,anIEEEFellow,isthedirectorofprocessarchitectureandintegrationatIntel.ROBERT
S.CHAU,anIEEEFellow,isthedirectoroftransistorresearchandnanotechnology.TAHIRGHANI,an
IEEEmember,isthedirectoroftransistortechnologyandintegration.KAIZADMISTRY,anIEEEsenior
member,managesthedevelopmentofIntels45nanometerCMOStechnologyinthelogicand Advertisement
technologydevelopmentgroup.

To Probe Further
RobertS.Chauandcolleaguesexplainedtheproblemthatledtotheuseofametalgateindetailin
Highk/MetalGateStackandItsMOSFETCharacteristics,IEEEElectronDeviceLetters, June2004.

Intelandotherswillbepresentingthelatesthighkdielectricandmetalgatetransistorresearchat
IEEEs2007InternationalElectronDevicesMeeting,inWashington,D.C.,from10to12December.

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