Microelectronic Engineering 50 (2000) 117–123 www.elsevier.nl / locate / mee Pre-alloying implants with indium as an enabling technology to extend titanium salicide towards 0.1-mm linewidths a, ,1 b c * ´` Eric Gerritsen , Marie-Therese Basso , Bruno Baylac a Philips Semiconductors, Centre Commun CNET-STMicroelectronics, 850 Rue Jean Monnet, 38921 Crolles, France b France Telecom, Centre Commun CNET-STMicroelectronics, 850 Rue Jean Monnet, 38921 Crolles, France c STMicroelectronics, Centre Commun CNET-STMicroelectronics, 850 Rue Jean Monnet, 38921 Crolles, France Abstract Pre-amorphisation implants (PAI) are the most promising technique to extend the use of TiSi towards 0.1 mm. We report 2 an implant strategy using indium, employing its favourable alloying properties towards silicon, titanium and the dopants. Its implementation in a 0.18-mm CMOS technology gave full C54–TiSi transformation on poly lines. Additionally the NMOS 2 contact resistances were found to be largely reduced. Data on unpatterned monitor wafers show indium to reduce the C54–TiSi transformation temperature by at least 508C, whereas the reduction found when using arsenic as implant species 2 is 258C.  2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Metallisation; Titanium silicide; TiSi ; Pre-amorphisation; Indium; Alloying 2 1. Introduction The main roadblock for the extension of titanium silicide TiSi towards 0.1-mm CMOS technology 2 is the increasing difficulty of the transformation towards its low resistivity C54 phase. Pre- amorphisation implants (PAI) appear to be the enabling technology to reduce this linewidth effect by decreasing the grain size of the high resistivity C49 phase. For this purpose arsenic is the most commonly implanted element. Arsenic is a heavy element, thus a good amorphiser and, most of all, it is readily available. However, the use of arsenic has been reported to be accompanied by device degradation, notably increase of junction leakage. Also the counterdoping with As gives an increase in the R of PMOS, sd with a resulting decrease of drive current [1]. It should also be noted that the alloying properties of arsenic towards titanium counteract the beneficial effects of pre-amorphisation. The formation of TiSi , with a formation enthalpy of 2 75 2 *Corresponding author. Fax: 1 31-24-353-4264. E-mail address: eric.gerritsen@philips.com (E. Gerritsen) 1 Present address: Philips Semiconductors, Gerstweg 2, 6534 AE Nijmegen, The Netherlands. 0167-9317 / 00 / $ – see front matter  2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S0167-9317(99)00271-3