TY - JOUR
T1 - Improvement of thermal stability of magnetoresistive random access memory device with SiN protective film deposited by high-density plasma chemical vapor deposition
AU - Suemitsu, Katsumi
AU - Kawano, Yuichi
AU - Utsumi, Hiroaki
AU - Honjo, Hiroaki
AU - Nebashi, Ryusuke
AU - Saito, Shinsaku
AU - Ohshima, Norikazu
AU - Sugibayashi, Tadahiko
AU - Hada, Hiromitsu
AU - Nohisa, Tatsuhiko
AU - Shimazu, Tadashi
AU - Inoue, Masahiko
AU - Kasai, Naoki
PY - 2008/4/25
Y1 - 2008/4/25
N2 - Embedded magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) with multi-level interconnects necessitates that magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) devices have a thermal stability of 350 °C or higher during fabrication. We have improved thermal stability of MRAM devices using SiN protective film deposited by high-density plasma chemical vapor deposition (HDP-CVD) at 200 °C. The MTJ devices with HDP-CVD SiN protective film did not degrade after post-annealing at 350 °C, which suggests that the HDP-CVD process reduced oxide metal on the etched surface of the MTJ devices and that the SiN film blocked H2O diffusion from the interlayer dielectric film during post-annealing at 350 °C. We also fabricated a 1-kbit MRAM array and experimentally demonstrated thermal stability at 350 °C.
AB - Embedded magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) with multi-level interconnects necessitates that magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) devices have a thermal stability of 350 °C or higher during fabrication. We have improved thermal stability of MRAM devices using SiN protective film deposited by high-density plasma chemical vapor deposition (HDP-CVD) at 200 °C. The MTJ devices with HDP-CVD SiN protective film did not degrade after post-annealing at 350 °C, which suggests that the HDP-CVD process reduced oxide metal on the etched surface of the MTJ devices and that the SiN film blocked H2O diffusion from the interlayer dielectric film during post-annealing at 350 °C. We also fabricated a 1-kbit MRAM array and experimentally demonstrated thermal stability at 350 °C.
KW - High-density plasma chemical vapor deposition (HDP-CVD)
KW - Magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ)
KW - Magnetization switching
KW - Magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM)
KW - Protective film
KW - SiN
KW - Thermal stability
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U2 - 10.1143/JJAP.47.2714
DO - 10.1143/JJAP.47.2714
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:54249163616
SN - 0021-4922
VL - 47
SP - 2714
EP - 2718
JO - Japanese Journal of Applied Physics
JF - Japanese Journal of Applied Physics
IS - 4 PART 2
ER -