May 30, 2023

Improving DRAM Device Performance Through Saddle Fin Process Optimization

As DRAM technology nodes have scaled down, access transistor issues have been highlighted due to weak gate controllability. Saddle Fins with Buried Channel Array Transistors (BCAT) have subsequently been introduced […]
December 19, 2022

The Other Side of the Wafer: The Latest Developments in Backside Power Delivery

At the beginning of my career in semiconductor equipment, the backside of the wafer was a source of anxiety. In one memorable instance in my early career, several wafers flew […]
December 7, 2022

SEMICON Korea 2023

Benjamin Vincent, Ph.D. will be giving a presentation entitled “Virtual Technology Development of A New 3D-DRAM Architecture”
September 22, 2022

Pathfinding by process window modeling: Advanced DRAM capacitor patterning process window evaluation using virtual fabrication

With continuous device scaling, process windows have become narrower and narrower due to smaller feature sizes and greater process step variability [1]. A key task during the R&D stage of […]
November 16, 2021

Understanding Electrical Line Resistance at Advanced Semiconductor Nodes

When evaluating shrinking metal linewidths in advanced semiconductor devices, bulk resistivity is not the sole materials property for deriving electrical resistance. At smaller line dimensions, local resistivity is dominated by […]
December 14, 2020

Process Window Optimization of DRAM by Virtual Fabrication

New integration and patterning schemes used in 3D memory and logic devices have created manufacturing and yield challenges.  Industrial focus has shifted from the scaling of predictable unit processes in […]
October 23, 2020

Micro Loading and its Impact on Device Performance: A Wiggling Active Area Case in an Advanced DRAM Process

In a DRAM structure, the charging and discharging process of capacitor-based memory cells is directly controlled by the transistor [1].With transistor sizes approaching the lower limits of physical achievability, manufacturing […]
January 29, 2020

Identifying DRAM Failures Caused by Leakage Current and Parasitic Capacitance

Leakage current has been a leading cause of device failure in DRAM design, starting with the 20nm technology node. Problems with leakage current in DRAM design can lead to reliability […]