Integrated decoupling capacitor process

摘要

The present invention discloses a fabrication process for integrated high dielectric constant capacitors for circuit decoupling. The top electrode is protected against the re-deposition of material from the bottom electrode during the patterning process of the bottom electrode, thus provides better capacitor yield against the shortage of top and bottom electrodes. The protection can be a sidewall spacer, or an extra hard mask protecting the sidewall of the top electrode. The dielectric for the decoupling capacitors is preferably novel high dielectric constant materials such as (Ba_1-xCa_x)(Ti_1-yZr_y)O₃ (BCTZ). The used of novel BCTZ high dielectric constant materials requires compatible electrode or seed layer such as Au or NiV, plus a low power etching process to avoid material damage.