Electrical fuses (eFuses)/metal resistors are essential for semiconductor applications such as system-on-chips (SoCs). However, conventional poly fuses/resistors are not feasible due to incompatibility with gate-last high-k/metal gate technology with self-aligned contacts. For example, in the process flow of forming the eFuses/metal resistors, nitride material formed on the top of metal gate material becomes damaged during the etching processes with selective chemistries.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds