Patent · US Expired

Method of fabricating a semiconductor device and method of cleaning a crystalline semiconductor surface

US5948161A · kind A · utility

42Cited by
5References
19Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMar 24, 1995
Grant dateSep 7, 1999
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 24, 2015

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH01L21/0262
  • WIPO fieldSemiconductors
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

In fabricating a semiconductor device, a semiconductor layer containing Al and a cap layer not containing Al are successively grown on a semiconductor substrate and are placed in a halogen gas environment where a chemical reaction between a halogen and an oxide film naturally formed on the cap layer removes the oxide film. Then, without exposing the layer to the atmosphere, the halogen gas environment is replaced with a dry-etching environment and the cap layer is dry-etched to a desired depth. Then, without exposing a semiconductor layer to the atmosphere, the dry-etching environment is replaced with a crystal growth environment. Subsequently, another semiconductor layer is grown on the semiconductor layer. A regrowth interface of excellent cleanliness is realized and the crystallinity of the regrown semiconductor layer is improved.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.