Samsung patents capacitor design that uses heat stress to improve performance
Samsung has been granted a patent for a specific type of capacitor used in semiconductor devices. The design places a second electrode between the first electrode and the dielectric layer, while a third electrode sits on top of the dielectric. The filing explains that the first electrode expands more than the dielectric when heated, which stretches the dielectric layer to alter its electrical properties.
In the filing’s own words
Provided are a capacitor and a semiconductor device including the same. The capacitor includes a first electrode, a dielectric layer over the first electrode, a second electrode between the first electrode and the dielectric layer, and a third electrode over the dielectric layer and in contact with the dielectric layer such that the dielectric layer is between the second electrode and the third electrode. A thermal expansion coefficient of the first electrode may be greater than a thermal expansion coefficient of the dielectric layer, and a work function of the second electrode may be higher than a work function of the first electrode.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A capacitor comprising: a first electrode; a dielectric layer spaced apart from the first electrode such that a first surface of the dielectric layer faces a first surface of the first electrode; a second electrode between the first electrode and the dielectric layer such that a first surface of the second electrode faces the first surface of the dielectric layer and a second surface of the second electrode faces the first surface of the first electrode, the second surface of the second electrode opposite to the first surface of the second electrode; and a third electrode over the dielectric layer and in contact with the dielectric layer such that the dielectric layer is between the second electrode and the third electrode, wherein a thermal expansion coefficient of the first electrode is greater than a thermal expansion coefficient of the dielectric layer, the first electrode inducing a strain in the dielectric layer such that the dielectric layer is tensile-strained in a thickness direction of the dielectric layer, and a work function of the second electrode is higher than a work function of the first electrode.
Facts
- Company
- Samsung (Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.)
- Official title
- Capacitor and semiconductor device including the same
- Patent number
- US12772470B2
- Application number
- 18363045
- Filed
- Aug 1, 2023
- Granted
- Oct 20, 2026
- Inventors
- 6
- Claims
- 19
Classified under
H10D 1/696 Electricity & electronicsH01G 4/008 Electricity & electronicsH01G 4/1209 Electricity & electronicsH01G 4/1218 Electricity & electronicsH01G 4/1236 Electricity & electronicsH01G 4/33 Electricity & electronicsMore from Samsung in Chips & hardware
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.