초록
Application of metal silicides such as TiSi$_2$ and CoSi$_2$ as contacts and gate electrodes are being studied. However, TiSi$_2$ due to the linewidth-dependance, and CoSi$_2$ due to the excessive Si consumption during silicidation cannot be applied to the deep-submicron MOSFET device. NiSi shows no such problems and can be formed at the low temperature. But, NiSi shows thermal instability. In this investigation, NiSi was formed with a Ti-capping layer to improve the thermal stability. Ni and Ti films were deposited by the thermal evaporator. The samples were then annealed in the N$_2$ ambient at 300-800$^{\circ}C$ in a RTA (rapid thermal annealing) system. Four point probe, FESEM, and AES were used to study the thermal properties of Ti-capped NiSi layers. The Ti-capped NiSi was stable up to 700$^{\circ}C$ for 100 sec. RTA, while the uncapped NiSi layers showed high sheet resistance after 600$^{\circ}C$. The AES results revealed that the Ni diffusion further into the Si substrate was retarded by the capping layer, resulting in the suppression of agglomeration of NiSi films.