Applied Materials introduces DCS tungsten silicide process for advanced metallization; Centura-based new tungsten silicide process offers path to higher yields, further technology innovation for integrated polycide system.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 17, 1995--Applied Materials Inc. has introduced a new chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process for tungsten silicide using dichlorosilane (DCS) as the silicon source gas.

The DCS Silicide process offers improved technical and yield performance in the critical transistor formation procedure in 0.5 micron and below semiconductor devices, and builds on the growing momentum of Applied Materials' technology in the tungsten silicide segment of the metal CVD market. Applied Materials is the overall global market leader in metal CVD, which includes blanket tungsten, tungsten silicide and emerging applications such as CVD titanium nitride (TiN).

Dr. Steve Tso, general manager of Applied Materials' Metal CVD Division, said, "This process has been under development for more than two years with one of our largest customers, and is ready for full production use in high-volume fabs. We expect the DCS Silicide process to rapidly become the standard tungsten silicide application for semiconductors using 0.35-micron and below geometries, as well as finding considerable use in less advanced production chips where silicide yield improvement is an issue."

This process significantly lowers microcracking in the silicide film for potentially significant yield improvements compared to the industry's widely used monosilane-based processes. Microcracking is kept under control in the DCS Silicide process by reducing stress changes during the silicide film's post-deposition annealing cycle, thus enhancing yield in this critical process step.

Besides its resistance to microcracking, the DCS Silicide process has other significant benefits over the monosilane (SiH4) silicide process chemistry that has been used for years in semiconductor production. Fluorine content of the DCS Silicide (less than 2E17 atoms/cm3) is more than three orders of magnitude lower than standard silane, virtually eliminating undesirable change in the gate oxide properties after anneal and improving the consistency of electrical characteristics in the device. The film also exhibits higher stepcoverage in small bitline structures, compared to standard silane silicide.

DCS Silicide-equipped systems have already been shipped to customers in North America, Europe and Asia/Pacific region; several of these systems are already being used in volume production. Regular production shipments of the systems are expected to begin in the second calendar quarter of 1995.

The DCS Silicide process uses Applied Materials' highly reliable, production proven tungsten silicide chamber technology, although modified to handle the higher temperatures required by the DCS process. It is available on the company's multichamber Centura platform, configured either for dedicated DCS Silicide processing with up to three silicide chambers, or on the Polycide Centura system. The unique Polycide Centura system combines single-wafer polysilicon deposition with the new silicide process to create integrated "polycide" (polysilicon/silicide) structures in a seamless automatic process that eliminates the need to use several different systems. The DCS Silicide process hardware is retrofittable to Centura-equipped silicide chambers; it will not retrofit to Precision 5000-based silicide chambers because of the higher vacuum integrity required.

Applied Materials Inc. is a Fortune 500 global growth company and the world's largest supplier of wafer fabrication systems and services to the global semiconductor industry. Applied Materials is traded on the NASDAQ National Market System under the symbol "AMAT."

CONTACT: Applied Materials Inc., Santa Clara

Charles Lewis, 408/748-5819 (media)

Mike Musson, 408/748-5227 (financial community)