The Application of Finfet Technology in the Manufacture of Semiconductors

Introduction

The term ‘semiconductor’ is used to describe materials in relation to their electrical conductivity. It is used to describe a material whose degree of electrical conductivity is between that of metal and an insulator. Such materials form the foundation of modern electronic device production. What this means is that they are used in the manufacture of a wide range of electrical devices. The devices range from transistors and diodes to integrated circuits (Zakharov, Kalygina, Netudykhatko & Panin, 2006).

Semiconductor materials have a unique characteristic that makes them indispensable in the manufacture of electrical devices. For example, the materials have the ability to change their level of conductivity with the addition of impurities. There is a specific technique used in the addition of these impurities. The technique is referred to as doping (Pawlak, Duffy & Keersgieter, 2008). There are a number of techniques used in the production of semiconductors. The techniques include the application of ‘interacting’ phenomenon, such as electrical fields or light. Gating techniques are also used in the production of semiconductors. The property of these materials makes it possible to use semiconductors in the development of devices used for a number of electrical purposes. Such purposes include switching, amplifying, and converting energy input from one form to another.

Semiconductor materials are produced with the help of a wide range of technological innovations. In this paper, the author seeks to discuss FinFET technology, one of the scientific techniques that are widely used in the production of semiconductors. The technique is used to produce semiconductors through gating.

Application of FinFET Technology in the Production of Semiconductor Materials

The term FinFET was initially used to refer to a double-gate, non-planar transistor. Initially, the transistor was built with ‘silicon on insulator substrate’. Transistors produced through FinFET technology are similar to their predecessors, the single gate transistor models. The latter are often referred to as the DELTA design.

There is one major difference between the two transistors. The conducting channels of FinFET transistors are wrapped with thin ‘fins’. The fins form the body of the device (Mac, Li, Wei, Zhang, He & Zhang, 2008). Today, the term FinFET is used generically to refer to any transistor that is multigate in nature. Such a transistor is characterized by a fin-based architectural design regardless of the number of gates that it contains. The thickness of the silicon fins that are used is very significant. It acts as a major determinant of the effectiveness of the device’s channel length. There is a formula used to measure the thickness of the fin in the transistors. It is computed as the distance between the source and the drain.

With the use of FinFET technology, many designs of semiconductor materials can be produced. In 2002, the Omega FinFET design was launched by a company based in Taiwan, which specializes in the manufacture of semiconductors. The name ‘Omega’ came as a result of the design’s resemblance to Omega, the Greek letter symbolized by Ω. The shape of the source and the drain structures, when they are covered by the gate, resembles the Greek letter. The development of the design was seen as a breakthrough in the manufacture of transistors for a number of reasons. For starters, the Omega FinFET transistors requires low voltage compared to the traditional single-gate transistors (Niskov, Zolotarev & Gashkov, 2009). The transistor, for instance, only requires 0.7 volts to function.

There is another advantage associated with Omega FinFET transistors. The advantage is noted in the gate delay associated with these transistors (Niskov et al., 2009). For example, the delay is significantly reduced for the n-type design. The technology brings down the delay to about 0.39 picoseconds for this design. It is reduced to 0.88 picoseconds for the p-type. Such delays are much lower compared to those in transistors made using other technologies.

The two properties (low voltage and reduced delay) increase the efficiency of the devices manufactured using the transistors. With FinFET technology, transistors can also be designed with two functional gates. The gates are electrically independent of each other. The development has enabled designers to produce models that are more efficient and that have low-power gates.

With FinFET technology, switching performance of electrical devices is improved (Shadrokh, Fobelets & Velazquez-Perez, 2008). Increased switching performance is of great importance in electrical devices that carry out heavy tasks within a limited period of time. Such electrical devices include, among others, those involved in computing. For instance, the Intel Corporation, a multinational company involved in the manufacture of semiconductor chips, has adopted the use of FinFET technology. The company has used semiconductors produced through FinFET technology since 2012. The use of this technology by such a large firm is an indicator of its positive attributes in the production of electrical devices.

The design of the FinFET transistor used by Intel is, however, slightly different from that of the conventional transistor. For example, the transistor has a rather unusual triangular shape. Traditionally, FinFETs are rectangular in shape (Kidwell, 2000). The chips containing the Intel-made transistors are yet to be availed in the market. However, scientists around the globe have termed the use of such chips as revolutionary. The chips have great potential in terms of improving the quality of new devices produced using the technology. It appears that FinFET is the future in the production of semiconductors. The triangular design of the new FinFETs will help in improving the structural strength of the new transistors. The triangular design’s improved switching performance is attributed to its design. The triangular prisms of the design, when compared to the rectangular prisms of the traditional design, have a higher area-volume ratio.

Conclusion

Semiconductors are important in the manufacture of electrical devices (Kidwell, 2000). Generally, a good semiconductor has poor electrical conductivity properties. The reason for this is that it has just the right number of electrons required to complete the covalence bonds. However, through a number of techniques, such as doping and gating, semiconductors can be improved to n-type design. The new design has more electrons than the first one. The semiconductors can also be improved to P-type design. The design is characterized by electron deficiency. Through the use of such techniques, electric current is manipulated within devices. The manipulation spurs the device’s intended action. Research conducted over the years for the purposes of improving the quality of semiconductors has led to the invention of new and more effective designs. One of such new technologies that has aided in the production of semiconductors is FinFET. Significant progress has been achieved in the production of semiconductors through this technology. Such improvements are especially in the production of microchips and transistors.

References

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