Abstract

The Advanced Semiconductor Lab is proposing a novel project to address the challenge of shrinking transistors and the need for higher efficiency in electronic devices. The project focuses on the development of 3D integrated circuits, where transistors are integrated in both the vertical and lateral directions. By incorporating multiple vertical integrated transistors in the same space previously occupied by one transistor, the relative energy efficiency can be improved by a factor of n, being n the number of stacked transistors. The project involves the fabrication and characterization of the electrical characteristics of these 3D integrated circuits. The fabrication process includes the deposition of the materials that make up a transistor, such as the semiconductor, metal, and insulator layers. The sputtering technique will be employed for the material deposition process. In this project, the material belongs to the category of wide bandgap semiconductor, which offers various technological advantages. Notably, this semiconductor can be grown under room temperature conditions, providing flexibility and ease of fabrication. Intermediate steps in the fabrication process include device patterning, which involves techniques like photolithography and plasma etching. These steps enable precise definition and shaping of the transistor components. The cutting-edge technology and instruments available at KAUST laboratories play a crucial role in achieving the goals of this revolutionary project.

Deliverables

Poster - Presentation report covering: 0. Cover slide and outline. 1. Introduction: the importance of the project and the need to develop 3D integrated circuits based on the literature review. 2. Background: employed material characteristics and working principle of the employed instruments. 3. Methodology: detailed explanation of the fabrication steps using flow diagrams, images, and text, and faced challenges during the process. 4. Results: processed results presented in figures with their respective discussion based on physical behavior analysis, and comparison with expected outcomes and literature references. 5. Conclusions: based on each different result and summary of the achievements. 6. References (they may also be mentioned in the corresponding content slide where the information was used).