Metals Deposition

Metals are ubiquitous in semiconductor manufacturing and serve many critical applications.  They are deposited using a variety of technologies including atomic layer deposition (ALD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD) & physical vapor deposition (PVD). Metals are used in high-speed high-k metal gates that turn a transistor on and off, create the low resistance ohmic junctions in source/drain contacts, as well as form local and back-end interconnects that control the precise flow of current to enable high performance and low power devices.  In addition, metals are deposited to form the wordlines and bitlines in memory devices, serve as electrodes for capacitor devices, and used as liners & barriers to enhance adhesion & reliability.  They also serve as key patterning materials in hardmasks and etch stop layers. Metals play a key role in the fourth evolution of Moore’s law – heterogeneous integration. Through Silicon Vias, Re-Distribution Layers and Hybrid Bonding Pads utilize metal interconnect technology to connect multiple chips together within a package to make the heterogeneous die platform function as one. Metals are also key in the creation of micro-inductors used in power management devices, backside metallization of power devices, as well as in the fabrication of various image sensor and communications devices.