Investigation of FinFET devices for 32nm technologies and beyond

FinFET devices are demonstrated with multiple fins (>2) at a 120nm pitch using e-beam lithography to address some key challenges of FINFETs for 32nm node technologies and beyond. Target Vt's are achieved by proper halo design using 20nm fins. Vt scatter due to Fin width variation is greatly reduced with a reduced halo. When such a realistic fin pitch is used, S/D contact formation becomes a serious challenge due to poly-to-active overlay requirements and the need for raised S/D for series resistance reduction. A new FinFET design without S/D contact pads is thus proposed and a selective epitaxial process to merge individual fins is developed. © 2006 IEEE.