U.S. patent application number 16/653007 was filed with the patent office on 2020-02-13 for display device and electronic device including the same.
The applicant listed for this patent is Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Jun KOYAMA, Shunpei YAMAZAKI.
Application Number | 20200052004 16/653007 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44114873 |
Filed Date | 2020-02-13 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200052004 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
KOYAMA; Jun ; et
al. |
February 13, 2020 |
DISPLAY DEVICE AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE INCLUDING THE SAME
Abstract
One embodiment of the present invention provides a highly
reliably display device in which a high mobility is achieved in an
oxide semiconductor. A first oxide component is formed over a base
component. Crystal growth proceeds from a surface toward an inside
of the first oxide component by a first heat treatment, so that a
first oxide crystal component is formed in contact with at least
part of the base component. A second oxide component is formed over
the first oxide crystal component. Crystal growth is performed by a
second heat treatment using the first oxide crystal component as a
seed, so that a second oxide crystal component is formed. Thus, a
stacked oxide material is formed. A transistor with a high mobility
is formed using the stacked oxide material and a driver circuit is
formed using the transistor.
Inventors: |
KOYAMA; Jun; (Sagamihara,
JP) ; YAMAZAKI; Shunpei; (Setagaya, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd. |
Atsugi-shi |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
44114873 |
Appl. No.: |
16/653007 |
Filed: |
October 15, 2019 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
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Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15988534 |
May 24, 2018 |
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16653007 |
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15370034 |
Dec 6, 2016 |
9991286 |
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15988534 |
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14507204 |
Oct 6, 2014 |
9721971 |
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15370034 |
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13570297 |
Aug 9, 2012 |
8866138 |
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14507204 |
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12957517 |
Dec 1, 2010 |
8247813 |
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13570297 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 29/7869 20130101;
G09G 2330/023 20130101; G02F 1/1368 20130101; G09G 3/3266 20130101;
H01L 27/1225 20130101; H01L 29/66969 20130101; G09G 2310/0286
20130101; H01L 27/124 20130101; G09G 2300/0426 20130101; G02F
1/134309 20130101; G02F 2201/123 20130101; H01L 29/045 20130101;
G09G 3/3688 20130101; G02F 1/133345 20130101; G09G 3/3677 20130101;
G02F 1/136286 20130101; H01L 27/1285 20130101; G09G 2310/08
20130101; H01L 29/66742 20130101; G02F 1/13452 20130101; G02F
1/13454 20130101; G09G 3/3275 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H01L 27/12 20060101
H01L027/12; G02F 1/1345 20060101 G02F001/1345; H01L 29/786 20060101
H01L029/786; H01L 29/66 20060101 H01L029/66; H01L 29/04 20060101
H01L029/04 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Dec 4, 2009 |
JP |
2009-276918 |
Claims
1. (canceled)
2. A semiconductor device comprising: an insulating film; and a
single crystalline oxide semiconductor film processed into a
predetermined shape over the insulating film.
3. The semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein the
single crystalline oxide semiconductor film is an island-shaped
single crystalline oxide semiconductor film.
4. The semiconductor device according to claim 2, further
comprising a substrate, wherein the insulating film is provided
over the substrate.
5. The semiconductor device according to claim 2, wherein the
single crystalline oxide semiconductor film comprises In, Ga, and
Zn.
6. A semiconductor device comprising: a single crystalline oxide
semiconductor film processed into a predetermined shape, wherein
the single crystalline oxide semiconductor film comprises In, Ga,
and Zn.
7. The semiconductor device according to claim 6, wherein the
single crystalline oxide semiconductor film is an island-shaped
single crystalline oxide semiconductor film.
8. The semiconductor device according to claim 6, further
comprising an insulating film over a substrate, wherein the single
crystalline oxide semiconductor film is provided over the
insulating film.
9. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising the
steps of: forming an insulating film; forming a single crystalline
oxide semiconductor film over the insulating film; and processing
the single crystalline oxide semiconductor film into a
predetermined shape.
10. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according
to claim 9, wherein the single crystalline oxide semiconductor film
is processed into an island-shaped single crystalline oxide
semiconductor film.
11. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according
to claim 9, wherein the insulating film is formed over a
substrate.
12. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according
to claim 9, wherein the single crystalline oxide semiconductor film
comprises In, Ga, and Zn.
13. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising
the steps of: forming a single crystalline oxide semiconductor film
comprising In, Ga, and Zn, and processing the single crystalline
oxide semiconductor film into a predetermined shape.
14. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according
to claim 13, wherein the single crystalline oxide semiconductor
film is processed into an island-shaped single crystalline oxide
semiconductor film.
15. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according
to claim 9, further comprising a step of forming an insulating film
over a substrate, wherein the single crystalline oxide
semiconductor film is formed over the insulating film.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a display device including
an oxide semiconductor, a manufacturing method thereof, and an
electronic appliance including the display device.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] Transistors formed over a glass substrate or the like are
typically manufactured using amorphous silicon, polycrystalline
silicon, or the like, as typically seen in liquid crystal display
devices. Although transistors including amorphous silicon have low
field effect mobility, they can be formed over a larger glass
substrate. On the other hand, although transistors including
polycrystalline silicon have high field effect mobility, they are
not suitable for being formed over a larger glass substrate.
[0003] In view of the foregoing, attention has been drawn to a
technique by which a transistor is manufactured using an oxide
semiconductor, and such a transistor is applied to an electronic
appliance or an optical device. For example, a technique of
manufacturing a transistor by using zinc oxide or
In--Ga--Zn--O-based oxide as oxide semiconductor, and using the
transistor for a switching element of a pixel of a display device
and the like is disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document
2.
REFERENCE
Patent Document
[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Published Patent Application
No. 2007-123861
[0005] [Patent Document 2] Japanese Published Patent Application
No. 2007-096055
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
[0006] The field effect mobility of a transistor in which a channel
region is formed in an oxide semiconductor is higher than that of a
transistor in which a channel region is formed in amorphous
silicon. The field effect mobility of a transistor formed using
amorphous silicon is approximately 0.5 cm.sup.2/Vs in general,
whereas the field effect mobility of a transistor formed using an
oxide semiconductor is 10 cm.sup.2/Vs to 20 cm.sup.2/Vs. In
addition, an active layer can be formed using an oxide
semiconductor by a sputtering method or the like, and a
manufacturing process thereof is simpler than that of a transistor
including polycrystalline silicon formed using a laser device.
[0007] Transistors which are manufactured using such an oxide
semiconductor over a glass substrate or a plastic substrate are
expected to be applied to liquid crystal display devices, organic
EL display devices, electronic paper, and the like.
[0008] Meanwhile, large-sized display devices are spreading.
Televisions with display screens having a diagonal of 40 inches to
50 inches are becoming common as home televisions and are expected
to become more popular in the future. As described above, a
transistor formed using an oxide semiconductor has a field effect
mobility which is 10 or more times as high as that of a transistor
formed using amorphous silicon; therefore, the transistor formed
using an oxide semiconductor can have properties sufficient to be
used as a switching element of a pixel even in a large-sized
display device.
[0009] However, when not only a pixel but also a driver circuit is
formed using a transistor formed using an oxide semiconductor, a
transistor formed using a conventional oxide semiconductor does not
have sufficient characteristics. Specifically, the field effect
mobility of the conventional oxide semiconductor needs to be
increased by several times in order to improve the current
capability of a transistor. In the case where a driver is formed
using a transistor formed using an oxide semiconductor with a field
effect mobility of 10 cm.sup.2/Vs, the size of a display device
should be smaller than 20 inches; therefore, when a larger-sized
display device is manufactured, a driver needs to be additionally
mounted.
[0010] An embodiment of the present invention disclosed in this
specification is an active matrix display device including a
plurality of pixels, a plurality of signal lines, and a plurality
of scan lines over an insulating substrate. The display device
includes a transistor formed using an oxide semiconductor with a
field effect mobility of at least 50 cm.sup.2/Vs or higher,
preferably 100 cm.sup.2/Vs or higher over the insulating substrate.
The display device also includes a gate driver and an analog switch
for driving a source line each including the transistor as one of
its elements.
[0011] The size of the above display device is at least 20
inches.
[0012] An embodiment of the present invention disclosed in this
specification is an active matrix display device including a
plurality of pixels, a plurality of signal lines, and a plurality
of scan lines over an insulating substrate. The display device
includes a transistor formed using an oxide semiconductor with a
field effect mobility of at least 50 cm.sup.2/Vs or higher,
preferably 100 cm.sup.2/Vs or higher over the insulating substrate.
The display device also includes a gate driver and a source driver
each including the transistor as one of its elements.
[0013] The size of the above display device is at least 20
inches.
[0014] One method for improving a field effect mobility is a method
for manufacturing a stacked oxide material, including the steps of
forming a layer of an oxide component over a base component,
performing crystal growth which proceeds from a surface toward an
inside of the oxide component by heat treatment to form a first
oxide crystal component at least partly in contact with the base
component, and stacking a second oxide crystal component over the
first oxide crystal component. In particular, the first oxide
crystal component and the second oxide crystal component have
common c-axes. Note that the first oxide crystal component has its
c-axis-aligned perpendicularly to a surface of the first oxide
crystal component. Note that on an a-b plane, elements adjacent to
each other are identical. In addition, the c-axis direction of the
first oxide crystal component corresponds to the depth
direction.
[0015] In the above manufacturing method, at least part or the
whole of a bottom surface of the first oxide crystal component in
which crystals are aligned is provided to be in contact with the
base component. By appropriately adjusting the thickness of the
oxide component, heating conditions, or the like, the bottom
surface of the first oxide crystal component in which crystals are
aligned is provided so that at least part or the whole of the
bottom surface is in contact with the base component.
[0016] In the above manufacturing method, annealing is performed
after deposition of the first oxide component as a first oxide
semiconductor layer and a second oxide component is deposited as a
second oxide semiconductor layer over a top surface of the first
oxide crystal component. After that, a crystal is grown from the
interface between the first oxide semiconductor layer and the
second oxide semiconductor layer toward a surface of the second
oxide semiconductor layer which is an upper layer. The first oxide
crystal component corresponds to a seed crystal for the second
oxide component. It is important to form, above the first oxide
crystal component, the second oxide crystal component as a
polycrystalline layer.
[0017] As crystallinity of an oxide semiconductor layer is higher,
a transistor with high field effect mobility can be realized.
[0018] As the crystallinity of the oxide semiconductor layers is
increased, the amount of change in the threshold voltage of a
transistor before and after a BT test can be reduced, so that high
reliability can be obtained.
[0019] In addition, as the crystallinity of the oxide semiconductor
layers is increased, temperature dependence of electric
characteristics of the transistor, for example, the amount of
change in on current or off current at temperatures of from
-30.degree. C. to 120.degree. C. can be reduced.
[0020] One feature of the above structure is that the oxide crystal
component in which a c-axis-aligned crystal is in contact with the
base component is a polycrystalline component.
[0021] A technical idea of the present invention is that an
impurity is not added to an oxide semiconductor and on the
contrary, the oxide semiconductor itself is highly purified by
intentionally removing an impurity such as water or hydrogen which
undesirably exists therein. In other words, the technical idea is
to highly purify an oxide semiconductor by removing water or
hydrogen which forms a donor level, reducing oxygen deficiency, and
sufficiently supplying oxygen that is a main component of the oxide
semiconductor.
[0022] When an oxide semiconductor is deposited, hydrogen at
density of 10.sup.20 cm.sup.-3 is measured using secondary ion mass
spectrometry (SIMS). The oxide semiconductor is highly purified and
made to be an i-type (intrinsic) semiconductor by intentionally
removing water or hydrogen which forms a donor level and
simultaneously adding oxygen (one of the components of the oxide
semiconductor).
[0023] Further, in a technical idea of the present invention, it is
preferable that the amount of water and hydrogen in an oxide
semiconductor be as small as possible, and it is also preferable
that the number of carriers in the oxide semiconductor be also as
small as possible. In other words, a carrier density of less than
1.times.10.sup.12 cm.sup.3, preferably less than
1.45.times.10.sup.10 cm.sup.3 which is less than or equal to the
measurement limit is needed. In addition, an ideal career density
is 0 or approximately 0 in the technical idea of the present
invention. In particular, when an oxide semiconductor is subjected
to heat treatment in an oxygen atmosphere, a nitrogen atmosphere,
or an atmosphere of ultra-dry air (air in which the water content
is less than or equal to 20 ppm, preferably less than or equal to 1
ppm, more preferably less than or equal to 10 ppb) at a temperature
higher than or equal to 450.degree. C. and lower than or equal to
850.degree. C., preferably higher than or equal to 550.degree. C.
and lower than or equal to 750.degree. C., water or hydrogen which
would form an n-type impurity can be removed and the oxide
semiconductor can be highly purified. In addition, when the oxide
semiconductor is highly purified by removing an impurity such as
water or hydrogen, the carrier density thereof can be less than
1.times.10.sup.12 cm.sup.3, preferably less than
1.45.times.10.sup.10 cm.sup.3 which is less than or equal to the
measurement limit.
[0024] In addition, when the heat treatment is performed at a high
temperature, that is, a temperature higher than or equal to
450.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 850.degree. C.,
preferably higher than or equal to 600.degree. C. and lower than or
equal to 700.degree. C., the oxide semiconductor can be highly
purified and also crystallized, and crystal growth proceeds from a
surface of the oxide semiconductor toward the inside thereof, so
that the oxide semiconductor has polycrystalline regions whose
c-axis is aligned.
[0025] As for the oxide semiconductor used in the present
invention, the oxide semiconductor having polycrystalline regions
whose c-axis is aligned is used as a seed crystal, a second oxide
semiconductor is formed thereover, and heat treatment is performed
at a temperature higher than or equal to 450.degree. C. and lower
than or equal to 850.degree. C., preferably higher than or equal to
550.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 750.degree. C., so that
the second oxide semiconductor can have a polycrystalline region
whose c-axis is aligned in a manner similar to that of the seed
crystal. That is to say, ideal axial growth or epitaxial growth in
which the seed crystal and the second oxide semiconductor have
c-axes which are aligned in the same direction can be
performed.
[0026] The second oxide semiconductor having the same axis as the
seed crystal can be stacked and also the crystal thereof can be
grown not only by performing solid-phase growth by heat treatment
after deposition but also by depositing with the use of typically
sputtering in a state where heating is performed at a temperature
higher than or equal to 200.degree. C. and lower than or equal to
600.degree. C. Further, when a substrate is heated at higher than
or equal to 200.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 600.degree.
C. in formation of the oxide semiconductor film by a sputtering
method, epitaxial growth or axial growth can be performed.
[0027] In addition, carriers in the oxide semiconductor are
reduced, or preferably all carriers are removed, so that the oxide
semiconductor serves as a path through which carriers pass in a
transistor. As a result, the oxide semiconductor is a highly
purified i-type (intrinsic) semiconductor which has no carrier or
very few carriers, so that off current of a transistor in an off
state can be extremely low, which is the technical idea of the
present invention.
[0028] In addition, when the oxide semiconductor serves as a path
and the oxide semiconductor itself is a highly purified i-type
(intrinsic) semiconductor which has no carriers or very few
carriers, carriers are supplied by a source electrode and a drain
electrode. When the electron affinity .chi., the Fermi level,
preferably corresponding to the intrinsic Fermi level in the oxide
semiconductor, and the work functions of the source and drain
electrodes are selected as appropriate, carriers can be injected
from the source electrode and the drain electrode. Therefore, an
n-channel transistor and a p-channel transistor can be manufactured
as appropriate.
[0029] All of the oxide crystal components and the oxide components
are formed using metal oxides, and any of the following metal oxide
films can be used: a four-component metal oxide film such as an
In--Sn--Ga--Zn--O-based film; a three-component metal oxide film
such as an In--Ga--Zn--O-based film, an In--Sn--Zn--O-based film,
an In--Al--Zn--O-based film, a Sn--Ga--Zn--O-based film, an
Al--Ga--Zn--O-based film, or a Sn--Al--Zn--O-based film; a
two-components metal oxide film such as an In--Zn--O-based film, a
Sn--Zn--O-based film, an Al--Zn--O-based film, a Zn--Mg--O-based
film, a Sn--Mg--O-based film, or an In--Mg--O-based film; or an
In--O-based film, a Sn--O-based film, or a Zn--O-based film. Note
that here, for example, an In--Sn--Ga--Zn--O-based film means a
metal oxide film including indium (In), tin (Sn), gallium (Ga), and
zinc (Zn) and there is no particular limitation on the
stoichiometric proportion.
[0030] As the oxide crystal components and the oxide components, a
thin film expressed by InMO.sub.3(ZnO), (m>0, and m is not a
natural number) can be used. Here, M represents one or more metal
elements selected from Ga, Al, Mn, and Co. For example, M can be
Ga, Ga and Al, Ga and Mn, Ga and Co, or the like.
[0031] In addition, an oxide semiconductor material expressed by
In-A-B-O may be used. Here, A represents one or plural kinds of
elements selected from elements belonging to Group 13, such as
gallium (Ga) or aluminum (Al), elements belonging to Group 14
typified by silicon (Si) or germanium (Ge), and the like. In
addition, B represents one or plural kinds of elements selected
from elements belonging to Group 12 typified by zinc (Zn). Note
that the In content, the A content, and the B content are set
freely, and the case where the A content is 0 is included. On the
other hand, the In content and the B content are not 0. In other
words, the above expression includes In--Ga--Zn--O, In--Zn--O, and
the like. In addition, an oxide semiconductor material expressed by
In--Ga--Zn--O in this specification is InGaO.sub.3(ZnO).sub.m
(m>0, and m is not a natural number), and it can be confirmed
using analysis with ICP-MS or RBS that m is not a natural
number.
[0032] In addition, as one step for high purification, first heat
treatment is performed in an atmosphere which hardly contains
hydrogen and moisture (such as a nitrogen atmosphere, an oxygen
atmosphere, or a dry-air atmosphere (for example, as for the
moisture, a dew point is lower than or equal to -40.degree. C.,
preferably lower than or equal to -50.degree. C.)). The first heat
treatment can be called dehydration or dehydrogenation, which is
for removing H, OH, or the like from the oxide semiconductor layer.
In the case where temperature is raised in an inert atmosphere and
then the atmosphere is switched to an atmosphere containing oxygen
during heat treatment, or in the case where an oxygen atmosphere is
employed, the first heat treatment can also be called additional
oxidation treatment.
[0033] For the first heat treatment for dehydration or
dehydrogenation, a heating method using an electric furnace, a
rapid heating method such as a gas rapid thermal anneal (GRTA)
method using a heated gas or a lamp rapid thermal anneal (LRTA)
method using lamp light, or the like can be used. In addition, as
the first heat treatment, heating with irradiation with light
having a wavelength less than or equal to 450 nm may be performed
at the same time. The oxide semiconductor layer which is subjected
to the first heat treatment for high purification is heated under
conditions that at least a peak at around 300.degree. C. of two
peaks of water are/is not detected when the oxide semiconductor
layer after the first heat treatment is measured with thermal
desorption spectroscopy (TDS) while the temperature is increased to
450.degree. C. Therefore, even if TDS is performed at up to
450.degree. C. on a transistor including the oxide semiconductor
layer which is subjected to heat treatment for high purification,
at least the peak of water at around 300.degree. C. is not
detected.
[0034] Since crystal growth is performed in a state where there is
no polycrystalline layer which serves as a seed of crystal growth,
it is preferable that the first heat treatment be performed at high
temperature for a short time so that only crystal growth from a
surface is performed. In addition, when a surface of the oxide
semiconductor layer is flat, a favorable plate-shaped
polycrystalline layer can be obtained. Therefore, it is preferable
that flatness of a base component such as an insulating layer or a
substrate be as high as possible. Increase of flatness is effective
because a polycrystalline layer in contact with an entire surface
of the base component can be formed easily. For example, the
flatness of the oxide semiconductor layer is approximately
equivalent to that of a commercial silicon wafer; for example,
difference in height of surface roughness in a region of 1
.mu.m.times.1 .mu.m by AFM measurement is less than or equal to 1
nm, preferably 0.2 nm.
[0035] In the polycrystalline layer, when electron clouds of In
included in the oxide semiconductor overlap with each other and are
connected to each other, electric conductivity .sigma. is
increased. Accordingly, a transistor including the polycrystalline
layer can have high field effect mobility.
[0036] One of methods for further performing crystal growth with
the use of the plate-shaped polycrystalline layer formed by the
first heat treatment as a seed is described below with reference to
FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C.
[0037] The outline of the order of steps is as follows: the first
oxide semiconductor layer is formed over the base component; first
heat treatment for high purification is performed; the
polycrystalline layer whose crystal direction is aligned is formed
over a surface of the first oxide semiconductor layer in the same
step as the first heat treatment for high purification; the second
oxide semiconductor layer is stacked thereover; and further, second
heat treatment for crystallization is performed, so that the second
oxide semiconductor layer is crystallized with the use of the
polycrystalline layer over the surface of the first oxide
semiconductor layer as a seed.
[0038] In the first heat treatment, crystal growth is performed
from the surface in the state where a crystal layer serving as a
seed of crystal growth is not present, whereas in the second heat
treatment, the plate-shaped polycrystalline layer serving as a seed
is present. Therefore, it is preferable that the second heat
treatment be performed for a long time at a lowest temperature at
which crystal growth can be performed because favorable
crystallinity can be obtained. The crystal-growth direction
obtained by the second heat treatment corresponds to an upward
direction from a lower portion, i.e., a direction from the
substrate side to the surface side (also referred to as
recrystallization direction) and is different from that in the
first heat treatment. In addition, since the polycrystalline layer
obtained by the first heat treatment is heated again by the second
heat treatment, the crystallinity of the polycrystalline layer is
further increased.
[0039] FIG. 1A illustrates a state where first heat treatment for
crystallization is performed on a first oxide semiconductor layer
formed over a base component 500. The first heat treatment is
performed in an oxygen atmosphere, a nitrogen atmosphere, or an
ultra-dry air atmosphere at higher than or equal to 450.degree. C.
and lower than or equal to 850.degree. C., preferably higher than
or equal to 550.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 750.degree.
C. Further, heat treatment may be performed such that temperature
is raised in an inert gas atmosphere and then the atmosphere is
switched to an atmosphere containing oxygen, or heat treatment in
an oxygen atmosphere may be performed. After the first heat
treatment, the first oxide semiconductor layer becomes a first
oxide crystal component 501 of a plate-shaped polycrystal which is
c-axis-aligned perpendicularly to a surface.
[0040] FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of a state just after
formation of a second oxide semiconductor layer 502. The second
oxide semiconductor layer 502 is formed by a sputtering method, and
a metal oxide target such as a metal oxide target with
In:Ga:Zn=1:1:1 [atomic ratio] or a metal oxide target with
In:Ga:Zn=1:1:2 may be used.
[0041] FIG. 1C illustrates a cross-sectional view posterior to the
second heat treatment. By the second heat treatment, crystal growth
proceeds upward toward a surface of the second oxide semiconductor
layer 502 with the use of the polycrystalline layer of the first
oxide crystal component 501 as a seed. As a result, a second oxide
crystal component 503b is formed, so that all the crystal
components are c-axis-aligned.
[0042] The second heat treatment can also be called dehydration or
dehydrogenation which is for removing H, OH, or the like from the
oxide semiconductor layer. In the case where temperature is raised
in an inert atmosphere and then the atmosphere is switched to an
atmosphere containing oxygen, or in the case where an oxygen
atmosphere is employed, the second heat treatment can also be
called additional oxidation treatment.
[0043] Further, the polycrystalline layer obtained in the first
heat treatment is heated again in the second heat treatment;
accordingly, a third oxide crystal component 503a in which
crystallinity is further improved is obtained.
[0044] The hydrogen concentration in the oxide semiconductor layer
is lower than or equal to 1.times.10.sup.18 cm.sup.-3, preferably
lower than or equal to 1.times.10.sup.16 cm.sup.-3, more preferably
substantially 0. The carrier density of the oxide semiconductor
layer is lower than 1.times.10.sup.12 cm.sup.3, preferably lower
than 1.45.times.10.sup.10 cm.sup.-3 which is lower than or equal to
the measurement limit. That is, the carrier density of the oxide
semiconductor layer is as close to zero as possible. Furthermore,
the band gap of the oxide semiconductor is greater than or equal to
2 eV, preferably greater than or equal to 2.5 eV, more preferably
greater than or equal to 3 eV. Note that the hydrogen concentration
of an oxide semiconductor layer can be measured by secondary ion
mass spectrometry (SIMS). The carrier density can be measured by
the Hall effect measurement. Lower carrier density N.sub.d can be
obtained with the use of a measurement result of
capacitance-voltage (CV) measurement and Formula 1.
N d = - ( 2 e 0 ) / d ( 1 / C ) 2 d V [ Formula 1 ]
##EQU00001##
[0045] In addition, it can be said that FIG. 1C illustrates a
two-layer structure in which the third oxide crystal component 503a
is provided on and in contact with the base component 500 and the
second oxide crystal component 503b is stacked thereon. There are
no particular limitations on materials of the first oxide crystal
component 501 and the second oxide crystal component 503b as long
as a polycrystal which is c-axis-aligned perpendicularly to the
surface can be obtained. The materials of the first oxide crystal
component 501 and the second oxide crystal component 503b may be
different or may contain the same components. "Containing the same
components" means that the same element is included therein.
[0046] Note that in the case where oxide semiconductor materials
containing the same components are used, a boundary between the
third oxide crystal component 503a and the second oxide crystal
component 503b is unclear as illustrated by a dotted line in FIG.
1C, so that a single-layer structure is obtained.
[0047] In this manner, the polycrystalline layer formed of a stack
of the third oxide crystal component 503a and the second oxide
crystal component 503b can be obtained by crystal growth by
separately performing two heat treatments.
[0048] Note that in FIG. 1A, crystal growth of the plate-shaped
crystal layer whose crystal direction is relatively aligned over
the surface of the first oxide semiconductor layer proceeds in the
depth direction from the surface; therefore, the polycrystalline
layer can be formed without being influenced by the base
component.
[0049] An example of a mechanism in which the crystal layer whose
crystal direction is relatively aligned is formed on the surface of
the first oxide semiconductor layer, for example, of an
In--Ga--Zn--O film is described. By heat treatment, zinc included
in the In--Ga--Zn--O film is dispersed and concentrated at the
vicinity of the surface, and becomes a seed of crystal growth. At
the time of the crystal growth, crystal growth in the horizontal
direction (a direction parallel to the surface) more strongly
proceeds than crystal growth in the depth direction (a direction
vertical to the surface); therefore, the plate-shaped
polycrystalline layer is formed. That is, the first oxide
semiconductor layer is more likely crystallized in the direction of
the a-b plane than in the direction of the c-axis. In addition, a-b
planes in crystals do not correspond to each other. In addition,
since a space above the surface of the In--Ga--Zn--O film is a free
space, crystal growth proceeding upward in this free space does not
occur. These are supposed from the fact that when TDS measurement
is performed to 450.degree. C., peaks of In and Ga are not detected
but a peak of zinc is detected in a vacuum-heat condition, in
particular at around 300.degree. C. Note that it can be confirmed
that the TDS measurement is performed in vacuum and emission of
zinc is detected from a temperature around 200.degree. C.
[0050] It can be said that a plate-shaped layer having a large
thickness can be formed in such a manner that two depositions of
oxide semiconductor films are performed so that a polycrystalline
layer to be a seed of crystal growth is formed and then a second
film is deposited, and then crystal growth is performed.
Accordingly, the method disclosed in this specification is
extremely effective.
[0051] In addition, the method is also useful in that a crystal
layer which has the a-b plane parallel to a surface and is
c-axis-aligned in a direction perpendicular to the surface can be
obtained regardless of a material of a base component.
[0052] A device formed using a metal oxide, typically an
In--Ga--Zn--O film is totally different from a device formed using
a single crystal Si, a device formed using SiC, and a device formed
using GaN.
[0053] As a wide-gap semiconductor, SiC (3.26 eV) and GaN (3.39 eV)
are known. However, SiC and GaN are expensive materials. Further,
SiC and GaN require a process temperature of 1500.degree. C. or
higher; thus, it is practically impossible to form a thin film
thereof over a glass substrate.
[0054] Further, the crystal structure of SiC or GaN is only a
single crystal. Therefore, control with a PN junction is needed and
more complete single-crystallization is needed. Accordingly, since
a small amount of impurities which are unintentionally mixed in a
manufacturing process serves as donors or acceptors, the carrier
concentration has lower limit. In contrast, a metal oxide can have
any of an amorphous structure, a polycrystalline structure, and a
single crystalline structure. One feature of a metal oxide is that
control of a band which is equivalent to a PN junction is performed
by utilizing each of properties of .PHI..sub.MS versus
.chi..sub.OS+1/2Eg.sup.OS, .PHI..sub.MD versus
.chi..sub.OS+1/2Eg.sup.OS, work functions of a source and a drain,
electron affinity of metal oxide, and energy band width, without
using control with a PN junction.
[0055] A metal oxide, typically an In--Ga--Zn--O film has a band
gap which is three times as wide as that of single crystal silicon
and is an inexpensive material because of a low manufacturing cost
as compared with SiC.
[0056] The band gap of In--Ga--Zn--O is 3.05 eV. The intrinsic
carrier density is calculated based on this value. It is known that
the energy distribution f(E) of electrons in a solid is based on
the Fermi-Dirac statistics represented by the following
formula.
f ( E ) = 1 1 + exp ( E - E F kT ) [ Formula 2 ] ##EQU00002##
[0057] In the case of a normal semiconductor whose carrier density
is not very high (which does not degenerate), the following
relational expression is satisfied.
|E-E.sub.F|>kT [Formula 3]
[0058] Accordingly, the Fermi-Dirac distribution of the formula (1)
can be approximated by the formula of the Boltzmann distribution
represented by the following formula.
f ( E ) = exp [ - E - E F kT ] [ Formula 4 ] ##EQU00003##
[0059] When the intrinsic carrier density (n.sub.i) of the
semiconductor is calculated with the formula (3), the following
formula can be obtained.
n i = N C N V exp ( - E g 2 kT ) [ Formula 5 ] ##EQU00004##
[0060] Then, the values of effective density of states (Nc and Nv)
of Si and In--Ga--Zn--O and the band gaps (Eg) thereof are
substituted into the expression (4) and the intrinsic carrier
density is calculated. The results are shown in Table 1.
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Si IGZO Nc (300K) [cm.sup.-3] 2.8 .times.
10.sup.19 5.0 .times. 10.sup.18 Nv (300K) [cm.sup.-3] 1.04 .times.
10.sup.19 5.0 .times. 10.sup.18 Eg (300K) [eV] 1.08 3.05 n.sub.i
(300K) [cm.sup.-3] 1.45 .times. 10.sup.10 1.2 .times. 10.sup.-7
[0061] It is found that In--Ga--Zn--O has extremely low intrinsic
carrier density when compared to Si. In the case where the value of
3.05 eV is selected as a band gap of IGZO, it can be said that the
carrier density of Si is approximately 1017 times as large as that
of In--Ga--Zn--O, assuming that the Fermi-Dirac distribution law is
applicable to the intrinsic carrier density.
[0062] In the case of an oxide semiconductor, a thin oxide
semiconductor film can be formed by a sputtering method at a
heating temperature from a room temperature to 400.degree. C. and a
maximum process temperature can be set to a temperature higher than
or equal to 300.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 800.degree.
C. In the case where the maximum process temperature is set to a
temperature lower than or equal to the strain point of glass, a
thin oxide semiconductor film can be formed over a large-area glass
substrate. Therefore, from the standpoint of industrialization, it
is important to manufacture a metal oxide whose band gas is wide,
employing a maximum process temperature higher than or equal to
300.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 800.degree. C.
[0063] Metal oxides which have been reported so far have an
amorphous state, a polycrystalline state, or a single-crystalline
state and are obtained through treatment at a high temperature of
approximately 1500.degree. C. However, as described above, a thin
polycrystal which is c-axis-aligned can be formed at a relatively
low temperature with a method in which a plate-shaped polycrystal
of a metal oxide is formed and then crystal growth is performed
using the plate-shaped polycrystal of the metal oxide as a seed.
Further, if formation of a thicker polycrystalline film is
possible, industrial application is further expanded. Note that in
order to obtain a fine thick polycrystalline film, flatness and
smoothness of the substrate are preferably high. This is because
small unevenness of the substrate leads to local shift of the
c-axis, which results in defects such as crystal transition due to
a difference in the c-axis direction between adjacent crystals as
crystal growth proceeds.
[0064] Note that with the use of the oxide semiconductor layer
including the plate-shaped crystal layer, a transistor with high
field effect mobility can be obtained. In addition, a transistor
with low off current can be obtained. In addition, a so-called
normally-off switching element can be obtained, so that a
semiconductor device with low power consumption can be
provided.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0065] In the accompanying drawings:
[0066] FIGS. 1A to 1C are cross-sectional views illustrating an
embodiment of the present invention;
[0067] FIGS. 2A to 2E are cross-sectional views illustrating
manufacturing steps of an embodiment of the present invention;
[0068] FIGS. 3A and 3B are a top view and a cross-sectional view of
an embodiment of the present invention;
[0069] FIGS. 4A and 4B are views illustrating a display device of
an embodiment of the present invention;
[0070] FIGS. 5A and 5B are views showing timing of a display device
of an embodiment of the present invention;
[0071] FIGS. 6A and 6B are views each illustrating a display device
of an embodiment of the present invention;
[0072] FIG. 7 shows a relation between rise time of a gate line and
a size of a display device;
[0073] FIG. 8 shows writing of a source line;
[0074] FIG. 9 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a shift
register;
[0075] FIGS. 10A and 10B show timing of a shift register;
[0076] FIG. 11 shows writing of a source line;
[0077] FIG. 12 shows writing of a source line;
[0078] FIG. 13 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a bottom
gate transistor including an oxide semiconductor;
[0079] FIG. 14 is an energy band diagram (schematic diagrams) of a
cross section along line A-A' illustrated in FIG. 13;
[0080] FIG. 15A shows a state in which a positive potential
(+V.sub.G) is applied to a gate (GE), and FIG. 15B shows a state in
which a negative potential (-V.sub.G) is applied to the gate
(GE);
[0081] FIG. 16 is a view illustrating a relation between the vacuum
level and a work function (.PHI.M) of a metal and a relation
between the vacuum level and the electron affinity (.chi.) of an
oxide semiconductor;
[0082] FIGS. 17A to 17C are cross-sectional views illustrating
manufacturing steps of an embodiment of the present invention;
[0083] FIGS. 18A and 18B are a top view and a cross-sectional view
illustrating an embodiment of the present invention;
[0084] FIGS. 19A and 19B are a top view and a cross-sectional view
illustrating an embodiment of the present invention;
[0085] FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the
present invention;
[0086] FIGS. 21A to 21E are each an example of an electronic
device; and
[0087] FIG. 22 is an example of an electronic device.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
[0088] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be
described in detail with references to the accompanying drawings.
However, the present invention is not limited to the description
below, and it is easily understood by those skilled in the art that
modes and details disclosed herein can be modified in various ways.
Therefore, the present invention is not construed as being limited
to description of the embodiments.
Embodiment 1
[0089] FIGS. 4A and 4B show an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4A illustrates a display device provided with a pixel portion
1502, gate drivers 1503 and 1504, and an analog switch 1505 for
driving a source line integrated on a glass substrate 1501. The
reason why the analog switch 1505 is used for driving the source
line is as follows. For example, in the case of a full high-vision
display device, there are 5760 (1920.times.RGB) source signal
lines. When a source driver is not formed over the same substrate
as the source signal lines, terminals of the source signal lines
are each connected to a terminal of the source driver. Therefore,
there is a problem in that a contact failure of a terminal easily
occurs due to mechanical impact or the like. Reduction in the
number of terminals is effective for less contact failure.
Accordingly, an object is to reduce the number of terminals by
forming an analog switch array over the same substrate as the
source signal lines and selectively connecting each terminal of RGB
to a source driver in a time division manner.
[0090] FIG. 4B illustrates an equivalent circuit of the analog
switch 1505. In an example illustrated in FIG. 4B, 1920 output
terminals of the source driver and 3 terminals controlling gates of
the analog switch array bring the number of terminals connected to
the outside of the display device to 1923 in total, which is
approximately one third of the number of such terminals in the case
where the analog switch array is not used for driving a source
line. These terminals are connected to FPCs 1506, 1507, 1508, and
1509. On the other hand, as compared to the case of performing time
division, the source driver connected to the analog switch needs to
operate three times faster and time for writing source signal lines
needs to be reduced to one third. In order to reduce time for
writing source signal lines, it is important to improve current
capability of transistors used for the analog switch.
[0091] FIG. 5A illustrates timing of performing time division. In
the case where time division is not performed, a source line may be
written in one line period. In the case where time division is
performed, a source line needs to be written in one third or less
of one line period. Moreover, in recent years, a double-frame-rate
driving method, a quadruple-frame-rate driving method, and the like
are widely used for improving characteristics of moving images in
display devices. These driving methods aim to improve definitions
of images by making images between frames in a television device,
while television broadcasting is at normal speed.
[0092] Therefore, a display device is required to operate at a
double frame rate or a quadruple frame rate. FIG. 5B shows periods
at a normal frame rate, a double frame rate, and a quadruple frame
rate. In FIG. 5A, a pulse width "a" of a gate clock corresponds to
one horizontal line period, within which a source line needs to be
written. As shown in FIG. 5B, the value of "a" is 15.3 is at a
normal frame rate (a frame frequency of 60 Hz), 7.63 .mu.s at a
double frame rate (a frame frequency of 120 Hz), and 3.81 .mu.s at
a quadruple frame rate (a frame frequency of 240 Hz).
[0093] The display device needs to complete writing of a source
line within these writing periods. By improvement of a mobility of
a transistor including an oxide semiconductor, these can be
satisfied. The "display device" here means a display device
including a transistor, such as a liquid crystal display device, an
organic EL display device, or electric paper.
Embodiment 2
[0094] FIGS. 6A and 6B each illustrate an embodiment of a display
device provided with a source driver. FIG. 6A illustrates an
example in which a pixel portion 1702, gate drivers 1703 and 1704,
and a source driver 1705 are provided over a glass substrate 1701.
The gate drivers 1703 and 1704 and the source driver 1705 are
supplied with signals from FPCs 1706 and 1707. A left side and a
right side of the display device are provided with the gate driver
1703 and the gate driver 1704, respectively, and a pixel is driven;
thus, driving can be performed with half of driving capability as
compared to the case where a gate driver is provided on only one
side.
[0095] FIG. 6B illustrates an example in which, over a glass
substrate 1711, a pixel portion 1712, gate drivers 1713, 1714,
1715, and 1716 on an upper side and a lower side of a display
device, and source drivers 1717, 1718, 1719, and 1720 on a left
side and a right side of the display device are provided. The gate
drivers and the source drivers are supplied with signals from FPCs
1721, 1722, 1723, and 1724. With such an arrangement, display can
be performed as long as each driver has driving capability for
driving only one fourth of the display device. In the case of a
full high-definition display device, the display device can be
driven with drivers each having capability of driving a QHD
(quarter high definition) display device. Therefore, according to
the present invention, it is possible for a full high-definition
display device with a size of approximately 100 inches to drive at
a double frame rate with a transistor including an oxide
semiconductor, whose field effect mobility is improved to higher
than or equal to 50 cm.sup.2/Vs, preferably 100 cm.sup.2/Vs.
Embodiment 3
[0096] Calculation results in the case where an analog switch is
used for driving a source line are show below. The calculation is
made in the case of a 100-inch liquid crystal display device with a
frame frequency of 240 Hz (quadruple frame rate). As described
above, a source line needs to be written within 0.7 .mu.s at a
quadruple frame rate. At this time, a transistor used for the
analog switch for sampling has L/W=3 .mu.m/1500 .mu.m, a field
effect mobility of 100 cm.sup.2/Vs, and a threshold voltage of 1.5
V. A source signal line has a sheet resistance of 0.01
.OMEGA./square, a resistance of 2.08 K.OMEGA., a capacity of 18.5
pF, and a line width of 6 .mu.m. An aim is to perform writing until
a source line potential reaches 99.9% of an expected value.
[0097] FIG. 7 shows a relation between rise time of a gate line and
a size of a display device. When the maximum delay time of the gate
wiring is set to 0.5 s, the delay time of the gate line can satisfy
the requirement even with a 100-inch display device. In this
calculation, the sheet resistance of the gate line is 0.1
.OMEGA./square, the capacity is 41.3 pF, and the line width is 23
.mu.m.
[0098] FIG. 8 shows the calculation result of writing of a source
line. Writing is performed while a sampling pulse is high, and
operation is performed so that a potential of an input signal and a
potential of the written source line become close. FIG. 8 shows a
potential of the sampling pulse, a potential of the input signal,
and a potential of the point of the source line whose potential has
the biggest difference with the input signal. As shown in FIG. 8,
99.9% of writing of the potential of the source line can be
completed in 0.2 .mu.s after rising of the input signal. Thus, a
100-inch full high-definition display device, which incorporates an
analog switch for driving a source line, can be driven at quadruple
frame rate by improving a mobility of a transistor including an
oxide semiconductor. Although calculation is made with a 100-inch
display device here, the size of the display device is not limited
to this. A display device with a size of 100 inches or smaller is
acceptable. Moreover, a display device with a size of 100 inches or
larger is acceptable with further improvement in a field effect
mobility and reduction in wiring resistance.
Embodiment 4
[0099] A calculation result in the case where a shift register is
used as a source driver for driving a source line is explained. A
set/reset shift register illustrated in FIG. 9 is used. Further,
the calculation is made on the assumption that the source drivers
are arranged as illustrated in FIG. 6B. The sampling is performed
for 960 shift registers at a time. One quarter of a region of a
full high-definition display device is written by one source
driver, so that points to be sampled are 960.times.RGB=2880. The
number of stages of shift registers required for sampling the 960
shift registers at a time is 30 stages. FIG. 10A shows a timing
chart of this case. FIG. 10B shows periods set in accordance with
FIG. 10A. The clock frequency of the source driver corresponds to
the inverse of the double of the time period B shown in FIG.
10B.
[0100] The clock frequency needed for driving the display device is
as follows: 579 kHz in the case of driving at a normal frame rate;
1.15 MHz in the case of driving at a double frame rate; and 2.31
MHz in the case of driving at a quadruple frame rate. The shift
registers can operate under the above condition only when field
effect mobility is 100 cm.sup.2/Vs. In this case, allowable time
for writing a source line is as follows: 0.43 .mu.s at a normal
frame rate; 0.22 .mu.s at a double frame rate; and 0.11 .mu.s at a
quadruple frame rate. This is enough for a capability of a source
driver, but the delay time of the source driver is a problem. In
the case of a 100-inch display device, actual driving corresponds
to the case of a 50-inch display device; accordingly, conditions of
the source line at this time are as follows: the sheet resistance
of the source signal line is 0.01 .OMEGA./square; the resistance of
the source line is 1.04 K.OMEGA.; the capacitance of the source
line is 9.3 pF; and the line width is 20 .mu.m.
[0101] FIG. 11 shows the delay time of the source line. In the case
of a 100-inch display device, the wiring delay is 30 ns; therefore,
writing needs to be completed within approximately 60% of the
allowable time. Accordingly, it is difficult for the 100-inch
display device to perform writing. FIG. 11 shows data of a 10-inch
display device with the frame frequency at a quadruple frame rate.
Here, a potential of a sampling pulse, a potential of an input
signal, and a potential of a point of the source line, whose
potential has the biggest difference with the input signal are
shown. Writing is performed in a period when the sampling pulse is
high and operation is performed so that the potential of the input
signal is equal to the potential of the source line. The potential
of the input signal reaches 99.9% of its maximum in approximately
0.07 .mu.s after rising of the input signal, which indicates that a
10-inch display device can operate at a quadruple frame rate.
[0102] FIG. 12 shows a calculation result in the case where the
frame frequency is 120 Hz at double speed and the size of a display
device is 100 inches. Conditions other than the frequency are the
same as the above. Here, a potential of a sampling pulse, a
potential of an input signal, and a potential of a point of the
source line, whose potential has the biggest difference with the
input signal are shown. Writing is performed in a period when the
sampling pulse is high and operation is performed so that the
potential of the input signal is equal to the potential of the
source line. The potential of the input signal reaches 99.9% of its
maximum in approximately 0.13 .mu.s after rising of the input
signal. In this case, this indicates that 99.9% of writing can be
performed within allowable time even with a 100-inch display
device. Thus, with a mobility of 100 cm.sup.2/Vs, a display device
even with a display size of 100 inches can operate at a double
frame rate with source drivers incorporated.
Embodiment 5
[0103] In this embodiment, an example of process for manufacturing
a transistor will be described with reference to FIG. 1A to 1C,
FIGS. 2A to 2E, and FIGS. 3A and 3B.
[0104] First, a conductive film is formed over a substrate 400
which is a substrate having an insulating surface, and then a gate
electrode layer 401 is provided using a photolithography step with
the use of a photomask.
[0105] As the substrate 400, a glass substrate which enables mass
production is preferably used, in particular. As a glass substrate
used for the substrate 400, a glass substrate whose strain point is
higher than or equal to 730.degree. C. may be used when the
temperature of the heat treatment to be performed in a later step
is high. For the substrate 400, for example, a glass material such
as aluminosilicate glass, aluminoborosilicate glass, or barium
borosilicate glass is used. Note that by containing a larger amount
of barium oxide (BaO) than boron oxide, a heat-resistant glass
substrate which is of more practical use can be formed. Therefore,
a glass substrate which contains BaO and B.sub.2O.sub.3 so that the
amount of BaO is larger than that of B.sub.2O.sub.3 is preferably
used.
[0106] An insulating layer serving as a base layer may be provided
between the substrate 400 and the gate electrode layer 401. The
base layer has a function of preventing diffusion of an impurity
element from the substrate 400, and can be formed with a
single-layer or a stacked-layer structure using one or more of a
silicon nitride layer, a silicon oxide layer, a silicon nitride
oxide layer, and a silicon oxynitride layer.
[0107] A metal conductive layer can be used as the gate electrode
layer 401. As the material of the metal conductive layer, an
element selected from Al, Cr, Cu, Ta, Ti, Mo, and W, an alloy
containing any of these elements as a component, an alloy
containing any of these elements in combination, or the like is
preferably used. For example, a three-layer structure in which an
aluminum layer is stacked over a titanium layer and a titanium
layer is stacked over the aluminum layer, or a three-layer
structure in which an aluminum layer is stacked over a molybdenum
layer and a molybdenum layer is stacked over the aluminum layer is
preferable. Needless to say, the metal conductive layer may have a
single-layer structure, a two-layer structure, or a structure in
which four or more layers are stacked. In the case where heat
treatment is performed later, a material which can withstand a
temperature of the heat treatment is preferably selected for the
gate electrode layer 401.
[0108] Next, a gate insulating layer 402 is formed over the gate
electrode layer 401. The gate insulating layer 402 can be formed to
have a single layer of a silicon oxide layer, a silicon nitride
layer, a hafnium oxide layer, a silicon oxynitride layer, or a
silicon nitride oxide layer, or a stacked layer thereof by a plasma
CVD method, a sputtering method, or the like. For example, a stack
including a silicon nitride film and a silicon oxide film is used.
The thickness of the gate insulating layer 402 is greater than or
equal to 50 nm and less than or equal to 200 nm.
[0109] In this embodiment, the gate insulating layer 402 is formed
using a high-density plasma apparatus. Here, a high-density plasma
apparatus refers to an apparatus which can realize a plasma density
higher than or equal to 1.times.10.sup.11/cm.sup.3. For example,
plasma is generated by applying a microwave power higher than or
equal to 3 kW and lower than or equal to 6 kW so that the
insulating film is formed.
[0110] A monosilane gas (SiH.sub.4), nitrous oxide (N.sub.2O), and
a rare gas are introduced into a chamber as a source gas to
generate high-density plasma at a pressure higher than or equal to
10 Pa and lower than or equal to 30 Pa so that the insulating film
is formed over a substrate having an insulating surface, such as a
glass substrate. After that, the supply of a monosilane gas is
stopped, and nitrous oxide (N.sub.2O) and a rare gas are introduced
without exposure to the air, so that plasma treatment may be
performed on a surface of the insulating film. The plasma treatment
performed on the surface of the insulating film by introducing
nitrous oxide (N.sub.2O) and a rare gas is performed at least after
the insulating film is formed. The insulating film formed through
the above process procedure has small thickness and corresponds to
an insulating film whose reliability can be ensured even though it
has a thickness less than 100 nm, for example.
[0111] In forming the gate insulating layer 402, the flow ratio of
a monosilane gas (SiH.sub.4) to nitrous oxide (N.sub.2O) which are
introduced into the chamber is in the range of 1:10 to 1:200. In
addition, as a rare gas which is introduced into the chamber,
helium, argon, krypton, xenon, or the like can be used. In
particular, argon, which is inexpensive, is preferably used.
[0112] In addition, since the insulating film formed using the
high-density plasma apparatus can have certain thickness, the
insulating film has excellent step coverage. Further, as for the
insulating film formed using the high-density plasma apparatus, the
thickness of a thin film can be controlled precisely.
[0113] The insulating film formed through the above process
procedure is greatly different from an insulating film formed using
a conventional parallel plate PCVD apparatus. The etching rate of
the insulating film formed through the above process procedure is
lower than that of the insulating film formed using the
conventional parallel plate PCVD apparatus by 10% or more or 20% or
more in the case where the etching rates with the same etchant are
compared to each other. Thus, it can be said that the insulating
film formed using the high-density plasma apparatus is a dense
film.
[0114] In this embodiment, a silicon oxynitride film (also referred
to as SiO.sub.xN.sub.y, where x>y>0) with a thickness of 100
nm formed using the high-density plasma apparatus is used as the
gate insulating layer 402.
[0115] Then, a first oxide semiconductor layer with a thickness
greater than or equal to 2 nm and less than or equal to 15 nm is
formed over the gate insulating layer 402. The first oxide
semiconductor layer can be formed by a sputtering method in a rare
gas (typically, argon) atmosphere, an oxygen atmosphere, or a mixed
atmosphere including a rare gas (typically, argon) and oxygen.
[0116] In addition, it is preferable that moisture or the like
which remains in the sputtering apparatus be removed before,
during, or after deposition of the oxide semiconductor film. In
order to remove residual moisture in the sputtering apparatus, an
adsorption-type vacuum pump may be used. Examples of pumps that can
be used comprise a cryopump, an ion pump, or a titanium sublimation
pump. The evacuation unit can be a turbo pump provided with a cold
trap. In the sputtering apparatus which is evacuated with the
cryopump, a hydrogen atom, a compound containing a hydrogen atom,
such as water (H.sub.2O), and the like are removed, whereby the
concentration of an impurity in the oxide semiconductor film formed
in the deposition chamber can be reduced.
[0117] In this embodiment, the first oxide semiconductor layer with
a thickness of 5 nm is formed in an oxygen atmosphere, an argon
atmosphere, or a mixed atmosphere of argon and oxygen in the
following conditions: an oxide semiconductor target (an
In--Ga--Zn--O-based oxide semiconductor target
(In.sub.2O.sub.3:Ga.sub.2O.sub.3:ZnO=1:1:2 [molar ratio], that is,
In:Ga:Zn=1:1:1 [atomic ratio])) is used, the distance between the
substrate and the target is 170 mm, pressure is 0.4 Pa, and a
direct current (DC) power source is 0.5 kW. Alternatively, as the
oxide semiconductor target, a target having a composition ratio of
In:Ga:Zn=1:1:0.5 [atomic ratio] or In:Ga:Zn=1:1:2 [atomic ratio]
can be used. In this embodiment, since crystallization is
intentionally caused by performing heat treatment in a later step,
it is preferable to use a target of an oxide semiconductor in which
crystallization is easily caused.
[0118] In addition, an oxide semiconductor contained in the target
for an oxide semiconductor has a relative density of 80% or more,
preferably 95% or more, more preferably 99.9% or more. The impurity
concentration in the oxide semiconductor film which is formed using
the target having high relative density can be reduced, and thus a
transistor having excellent electric characteristics or high
reliability can be obtained.
[0119] Further, pre-heat treatment is preferably performed before
the first oxide semiconductor layer is deposited, in order to
remove moisture or hydrogen which remains on an inner wall of a
sputtering apparatus, on a surface of the target, or inside a
target material. As the pre-heat treatment, a method in which the
inside of the deposition chamber is heated to higher than or equal
to 200.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 600.degree. C. under
reduced pressure, a method in which introduction and exhaust of
nitrogen or an inert gas are repeated while the inside of the
deposition chamber is heated, and the like can be given.
[0120] Next, the first oxide semiconductor layer is subjected to
first heat treatment, so that at least part thereof is
crystallized. In the first heat treatment, a temperature higher
than or equal to 450.degree. C. and lower than or equal to
850.degree. C. is employed. In addition, heating time is longer
than or equal to 1 minute and shorter than or equal to 24 hours. By
the first heat treatment, a first oxide semiconductor layer 403
that is a polycrystalline layer obtained by crystal growth
proceeding from a surface is formed (see FIG. 2A). Further, the
crystal layer formed at the surface has a surface parallel to an
a-b plane and a c-axis aligned perpendicularly to the surface of
the crystal layer. In this embodiment, an example is described in
which the whole first oxide semiconductor film is made to contain a
crystal (also referred to as a co-growing (CG) crystal) by the
first heat treatment.
[0121] Note that in the first heat treatment, it is preferable that
water, hydrogen, and the like be not contained in nitrogen, oxygen,
or a rare gas such as helium, neon, or argon. In addition, it is
preferable that the purity of nitrogen, oxygen, or a rare gas such
as helium, neon, or argon which is introduced to the heat treatment
apparatus be 6N or more, more preferably 7N or more. Further, the
first heat treatment may be performed in a dry air atmosphere with
an H.sub.2O concentration of lower than or equal to 20 ppm.
[0122] In this embodiment, heat treatment in a dry air atmosphere
at 700.degree. C. for one hour is performed as the first heat
treatment.
[0123] In addition, when the temperature is increased in the first
heat treatment, the inside of a furnace may be set to a nitrogen
atmosphere, and when cooling is performed, the inside of the
furnace may be switched to an oxygen atmosphere. By performing
dehydration or dehydrogenation in a nitrogen atmosphere and
switching the atmosphere to an oxygen atmosphere, oxygen can be
supplied into the first oxide semiconductor layer, so that an
i-type oxide semiconductor layer can be obtained.
[0124] Next, a second oxide semiconductor layer 404 whose thickness
is larger than at least that of the first oxide semiconductor layer
403 and less than or equal to 10 .mu.m is formed over the first
oxide semiconductor layer 403 that is a plate-shaped polycrystal
(see FIG. 2B). Note that a thickness of the second oxide
semiconductor layer 404 suitable for a device to be manufactured
may be determined appropriately by practitioners. For example, in
the case of manufacturing a bottom-gate transistor, the total
thickness of the first oxide semiconductor layer 403 and the second
oxide semiconductor layer 404 may be greater than or equal to 10 nm
and less than or equal to 200 nm.
[0125] As the second oxide semiconductor layer 404, a
four-component metal oxide film such as an In--Sn--Ga--Zn--O film,
a three-component metal oxide film such as an In--Ga--Zn--O film,
an In--Sn--Zn--O film, an In--Al--Zn--O film, a Sn--Ga--Zn--O film,
an Al--Ga--Zn--O film, or a Sn--Al--Zn--O film, a two-component
metal oxide film such as an In--Zn--O film, a Sn--Zn--O film, an
Al--Zn--O film, a Zn--Mg--O film, a Sn--Mg--O film, or an In--Mg--O
film, or an In--O film, a Sn--O film, or a Zn--O film can be
used.
[0126] It is preferable that the first oxide semiconductor layer
403 and the second oxide semiconductor layer 404 be formed using
materials including the same components or have the same crystal
structures and lattice constants close to each other (mismatch less
than or equal to 1%). In the case where the materials including the
same components are used, crystal growth with the use of the
polycrystalline layer of the first oxide semiconductor layer 403 as
a seed is easily performed during the subsequent crystallization
step. In addition, in the case where the materials including the
same components are used, an interface property such as adhesion or
electric characteristics is favorable.
[0127] Next, second heat treatment is performed, so that crystal
growth is performed using the crystal layer of the first oxide
semiconductor layer 403 as a seed. The second heat treatment is
performed at a temperature higher than or equal to 450.degree. C.
and lower than or equal to 850.degree. C., preferably higher than
or equal to 550.degree. C. and lower than or equal to 650.degree.
C. In addition, heating time is longer than or equal to 1 minute
and shorter than or equal to 24 hours. By the second heat
treatment, the second oxide semiconductor layer is crystallized. In
this manner, a plate-shaped crystallized oxide semiconductor stack
430 can be obtained (see FIG. 2C).
[0128] A plate-shaped crystal is preferably a single crystal which
is c-axis-aligned in a direction perpendicular to a surface of the
oxide semiconductor layer. If the plate-shaped crystal is not a
single crystal body, then the plate-shaped crystal is preferably a
polycrystal in which the a-axis and the b-axis of each crystal are
aligned in a channel formation region and is c-axis-aligned in a
direction perpendicular to a surface of the oxide semiconductor
layer. Note that in the case where a surface of the base of the
oxide semiconductor layer is uneven, the plate-shaped crystal is a
polycrystal.
[0129] In order to describe a superordinate concept to easily
understand steps of FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C, magnified schematic views
are illustrated in FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C.
[0130] FIG. 1A illustrates a first oxide crystal component 501
which has been subjected to first heat treatment for
crystallization over a base component 500. FIG. 1A corresponds to
FIG. 2A and the base component 500 corresponds to the gate
insulating layer 402. FIG. 1B corresponds to FIG. 2B and is a
cross-sectional view at the time just after deposition of a second
oxide semiconductor layer 502. FIG. 1C corresponds to FIG. 2C and
is a cross-sectional view at the time after second heat treatment.
By the second heat treatment, a third oxide crystal component 503a
formed of a crystal layer whose crystal direction is highly aligned
is obtained. In the case where the first oxide component and the
second oxide component are formed using the oxide semiconductor
materials including the same components, as illustrated in FIG. 1C,
crystal growth proceeds upward toward a surface of the second oxide
component with the use of a crystal layer of the third oxide
crystal component 503a as a nucleus, and a second oxide crystal
component 503b is formed, so that all the crystal components are
aligned along their c-axis. Therefore, a boundary between the third
oxide crystal component and the second oxide crystal component is
unclear as illustrated with a dotted line in FIG. 1C. In addition,
by the second heat treatment, the inside of the second oxide
component which has just been deposited is highly purified to be
layer including an amorphous oxide semiconductor.
[0131] Next, the oxide semiconductor stack 430 formed from the
first oxide semiconductor layer and the second oxide semiconductor
layer is processed into an island-shaped oxide semiconductor stack
431 using a photolithography step (see FIG. 2D). Further, a resist
mask for forming the island-shaped oxide semiconductor stack 431
may be formed using an inkjet method. Formation of the resist mask
by an inkjet method needs no photomask; thus, manufacturing cost
can be reduced.
[0132] Next, after a metal conductive film is formed over the gate
insulating layer 402 and the island-shaped oxide semiconductor
stack 431 by a sputtering method or the like, photolithography step
is performed so that a resist mask is formed. Then, the metal
conductive film is selectively etched, so that metal electrode
layers are formed.
[0133] As the material of the metal conductive film, which is to be
a source electrode and a drain electrode (including a wiring formed
using the same layer), a metal material such as Al, Cu, Cr, Ta, Ti,
Mo, or W; or an alloy material whose main component is any of these
metal materials is used. In addition, a structure in which a layer
of a high-melting-point metal such as Cr, Ta, Ti, Mo, or W is
stacked on a lower side and/or an upper side of a metal layer of
Al, Cu, or the like may be used. In addition, heat resistance can
be improved by using an Al material to which an element such as Si,
Ti, Ta, W, Mo, Cr, Nd, Sc, or Y which prevents generation of a
hillock or a whisker in an Al film is added.
[0134] For example, the metal conductive film preferably has a
three-layer structure in which an aluminum layer is stacked over a
titanium layer and a titanium layer is stacked over the aluminum
layer, or a three layer structure in which an aluminum layer is
stacked over a molybdenum layer and a molybdenum layer is stacked
over the aluminum layer. Alternatively, the metal conductive film
can have a two-layer structure in which an aluminum layer and a
tungsten layer are stacked, a two-layer structure in which a copper
layer and a tungsten layer are stacked, or a two-layer structure in
which an aluminum layer and a molybdenum layer are stacked.
Needless to say, the metal conductive film may have a single-layer
structure or a stacked-layer structure including four or more
layers.
[0135] Then, the resist mask is removed, and a photolithography
step is performed. A resist mask is formed and selective etching is
performed, so that a source electrode layer 405a and a drain
electrode layer 405b are formed. After that, the resist mask is
removed (see FIG. 2E). Note that in this photolithography step, in
some cases, part of the island-shaped oxide semiconductor stack 431
is etched, whereby an oxide semiconductor layer having a groove (a
depression portion) is formed.
[0136] As illustrated in FIG. 2E, the gate electrode layer 401
includes a region overlapping with the source electrode layer 405a
(and the drain electrode layer 405b), which is also one feature. A
region between an edge portion of the source electrode layer 405a
and a step of the gate insulating layer 402, in other words, a
region between the edge portion of the source electrode layer 405a
and a point at which a flat surface is changed to a tapered surface
of the gate insulating layer in the cross-sectional view (here, an
L.sub.OV region in FIG. 2E) is included. The L.sub.OV region is
important in order that carriers are prevented from flowing to a
crystal grain boundary generated due to the step of the edge
portion of the gate electrode layer.
[0137] In addition, in a side surface of the oxide semiconductor
stack 432, a crystal layer which is in contact with the source
electrode layer 405a or the drain electrode layer 405b is in an
amorphous state in some cases.
[0138] Further, a resist mask used for forming the source electrode
layer 405a and the drain electrode layer 405b may be formed by an
inkjet method. Formation of the resist mask by an inkjet method
needs no photomask; thus, manufacturing cost can be reduced.
[0139] In order to reduce the number of photomasks used in a
photolithography step and reduce the number of photolithography
steps, an etching step may be performed with the use of a
multi-tone mask which is a light-exposure mask through which light
is transmitted to have a plurality of intensities. A resist mask
formed with the use of a multi-tone mask has a plurality of
thicknesses and further can be changed in shape by etching;
therefore, the resist mask can be used in a plurality of etching
steps for processing into different patterns. Therefore, a resist
mask corresponding to at least two kinds or more of different
patterns can be formed by one multi-tone mask. Thus, the number of
light-exposure masks can be reduced and the number of corresponding
photolithography steps can be also reduced, whereby simplification
of a process can be realized.
[0140] Next, an oxide insulating layer 407 serving as a protective
insulating film is formed in contact with part of the oxide
semiconductor layer.
[0141] The oxide insulating layer 407 can be formed to a thickness
of at least 1 nm by a method by which impurities such as water and
hydrogen do not enter the oxide insulating layer 407, such as a
sputtering method, as appropriate. In this embodiment, a
300-nm-thick silicon oxide film is deposited as the oxide
insulating layer 407 by a sputtering method. The substrate
temperature in deposition may be higher than or equal to room
temperature and lower than or equal to 300.degree. C. In this
embodiment, the substrate temperature is 100.degree. C. The
deposition of the silicon oxide film by a sputtering method can be
performed in a rare gas (typically argon) atmosphere, an oxygen
atmosphere, or an atmosphere of a rare gas (typically argon) and
oxygen. As a target, a silicon oxide target or a silicon target may
be used. For example, with the use of a silicon target, silicon
oxide can be formed by a sputtering method in an atmosphere of
oxygen and nitrogen. As the oxide insulating layer 407 which is
formed so as to be in contact with the oxide semiconductor layer
whose resistance is reduced, an inorganic insulating film is used.
Typically, a silicon oxide film, a silicon nitride oxide film, an
aluminum oxide film, or an aluminum oxynitride film is used.
Further, a protective insulating layer such as a silicon nitride
film or an aluminum nitride film may be formed over the oxide
insulating layer 407.
[0142] Further, a contact hole reaching the gate electrode layer
401 is formed in the oxide insulating layer 407 and the gate
insulating layer 402, and a connection electrode which is
electrically connected to the gate electrode layer 401 and supplies
a gate potential to the gate electrode layer 401 may be formed over
the oxide insulating layer 407. Alternatively, the following may be
employed: a contact hole reaching the gate electrode layer 401 is
formed after formation of the gate insulating layer 402; a
connection electrode is formed thereover using the same material as
that of the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer;
the oxide insulating layer 407 is formed over the connection
electrode; a contact hole reaching the connection electrode is
formed in the oxide insulating layer 407; and then, an electrode
which is electrically connected to the connection electrode and
supplies a gate potential to the connection electrode is formed
over the oxide insulating layer 407.
[0143] Through the above process, a transistor 470 is formed (see
FIG. 3B). FIG. 3A illustrates an example of a top view of the
transistor 470. Note that FIG. 3B corresponds to a cross-sectional
view taken along a broken line C1-C2 in FIG. 3A.
[0144] One of features of the transistor 470 is that a top surface
of the gate electrode layer which overlaps with the channel
formation region is flat, an oxide component which is
c-axis-aligned perpendicularly to the flat surface is included, and
the source electrode layer or the drain electrode layer overlaps
with the step generated due to the edge portion of the gate
electrode layer. In the case where there is a projection portion
and a recessed portion on the substrate side, in the oxide
component (the oxide semiconductor stack 432 in this embodiment), a
region in which crystal growth meets the recessed portion becomes
polycrystals having a crystal boundary. Accordingly, by forming the
L.sub.OV region illustrated in FIG. 3B, carriers can be prevented
from flowing to the crystal boundary generated in unevenness of the
edge portion of the gate electrode layer. Therefore, in the
transistor 470, the source electrode layer or the drain electrode
layer is provided over part of the flat portion of the gate
electrode layer, so that the source electrode layer or the drain
electrode layer includes a region overlapping with the gate
electrode layer.
[0145] Needless to say, this embodiment is not particularly limited
to the structure of the transistor 470 illustrated in FIG. 3B. A
top gate transistor or a bottom gate transistor may be employed.
For example, in order to prevent etching damage at the time of
formation of the source electrode layer and the drain electrode
layer in FIG. 2E, a channel-stop structure in which an oxide
insulating layer overlapping with a channel formation region is
formed as a channel stopper may be employed for the transistor.
[0146] In addition, an electrode layer which can function as a back
gate may be provided over the oxide insulating layer 407. The
potential of the back gate can be a fixed potential, e.g., 0 V, or
a ground potential, and may be determined as appropriate by
practitioners. Further, by controlling gate voltage applied to the
back gate, threshold voltage can be controlled. Alternatively, when
the threshold voltage is set positive, the transistor can function
as an enhancement type transistor. Further alternatively, when the
threshold voltage is set negative, the transistor can function as a
depletion type transistor. For example, an inverter circuit
including a combination of the enhancement type transistor and the
depletion type transistor (hereinafter, such a circuit is referred
to as an EDMOS circuit) can be used for a driver circuit. The
driver circuit includes at least a logic circuit portion, and a
switch portion or a buffer portion. The logic circuit portion has a
circuit structure including the above EDMOS circuit.
[0147] A principle of operation of a bottom-gate transistor
including an oxide semiconductor will be described below.
[0148] FIG. 13 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a
transistor including an oxide semiconductor. An oxide semiconductor
layer (OS) is provided over a gate electrode (GE) with a gate
insulating film (GI) provided therebetween, and a source electrode
(S) and a drain electrode (D) are provided thereover. In addition,
an oxide insulating layer overlapping with a channel formation
region of the oxide semiconductor layer (OS) is provided the source
electrode (S) and the drain electrode (D).
[0149] FIGS. 14A and 14B are energy band diagrams (schematic
diagrams) along the cross section A-A' illustrated in FIG. 13. FIG.
14A shows the case where the source and the drain have voltage of
the same potential (V.sub.D=0 V). FIG. 14B shows the case where
positive potential is applied to the drain (V.sub.D>0) with
respect to the source. In FIG. 14B, a black circle (.cndot.) and a
white circle (.smallcircle.) represent an electron and a hole and
have electric charges (-q, +q), respectively.
[0150] FIGS. 15A and 15B are energy band diagrams (schematic views)
taken along the cross section B-B' of FIG. 13 in the case where a
gate voltage is 0 V. FIG. 15A shows an on state in which a positive
potential (+V.sub.G) is applied to the gate (GE) and carriers
(electrons) flow between the source and the drain. FIG. 15B shows a
state in which a negative potential (-V.sub.G) is applied to the
gate (GE), that is, a case where the transistor is in an off state
(where minority carriers do not flow).
[0151] When the thickness of the oxide semiconductor is
approximately 50 nm and a donor concentration becomes less than or
equal to 1.times.10.sup.18/cm.sup.3 by highly purifying the oxide
semiconductor, a depletion layer spreads throughout the oxide
semiconductor. In other words, the transistor can be regarded as a
fully-depletion type transistor.
[0152] FIG. 16 shows relation between the vacuum level and the work
function of a metal (.PHI.M) and relation between the vacuum level
and the electron affinity (.chi.) of an oxide semiconductor.
[0153] Because metal degenerates, the conduction band and the Fermi
level correspond to each other. On the other hand, a conventional
oxide semiconductor is typically an n-type semiconductor; in that
case, the Fermi level (Ef) is away from the intrinsic Fermi level
(Ei) located in the middle of a band gap and is located closer to
the conduction band. Note that it is known that hydrogen is a donor
in an oxide semiconductor and is one factor causing an oxide
semiconductor to be an n-type semiconductor.
[0154] On the other hand, an oxide semiconductor of the present
invention is an intrinsic (i-type) or substantially intrinsic oxide
semiconductor which is obtained by removing hydrogen that is an
n-type impurity from an oxide semiconductor and purifying the oxide
semiconductor so that an impurity that is not a main component of
the oxide semiconductor is contained therein as little as possible.
In other words, a feature is that a purified i-type (intrinsic)
semiconductor, or a semiconductor close thereto, is obtained not by
adding an impurity but by removing an impurity such as hydrogen or
water as much as possible. This enables the Fermi level (Ef) to be
at the same level as the intrinsic Fermi level (Ei).
[0155] An oxide semiconductor has a band gap (Eg) of 3.05 eV to
3.15 eV. In the case where the band gap (Eg) of an oxide
semiconductor is 3.15 eV, the electron affinity (.chi.) is said to
be 4.3 eV. The work function of titanium (Ti) used for forming the
source and drain electrodes is substantially equal to the electron
affinity (.chi.) of the oxide semiconductor. In that case, a
Schottky barrier for electrons is not formed at an interface
between the metal and the oxide semiconductor.
[0156] In other words, in the case where the work function of the
metal (.PHI.M) and the electron affinity (.chi.) of the oxide
semiconductor are equal to each other and the metal and the oxide
semiconductor are in contact with each other, an energy band
diagram (a schematic diagram) as illustrated in FIG. 14A is
obtained.
[0157] In FIG. 14B, a black circle (.cndot.) represents an
electron, and when a positive potential is applied to the drain,
the electron is injected into the oxide semiconductor over the
barrier (h) and flows toward the drain. In that case, the height of
the barrier (h) changes depending on the gate voltage and the drain
voltage; in the case where a positive drain voltage is applied, the
height of the barrier (h) is smaller than the height of the barrier
in FIG. 14A where no voltage is applied, that is, 1/2 of the band
gap (Eg).
[0158] At this time, the electron moves in the bottom, which is
energetically stable, on the oxide semiconductor side at the
interface between the gate insulating film and the highly-purified
oxide semiconductor as illustrated in FIG. 15A.
[0159] In addition, in FIG. 15B, when a negative potential (reverse
bias) is applied to the gate electrode (GI), the value of current
is extremely close to zero because holes that are minority carriers
are substantially zero.
[0160] By increasing the purity of the oxide semiconductor so that
the oxide semiconductor includes an impurity other than its main
component as little as possible, an intrinsic (i-type) or
substantially intrinsic oxide semiconductor is obtained.
Consequently, the interface characteristics with the gate
insulating film become obvious. Therefore, the interface
characteristics need to be considered separately from bulk
characteristics. Thus, the gate insulating film is needed to form a
favorable interface with the oxide semiconductor. For example, it
is preferable to use an insulating film which is formed by a CVD
method which uses high density plasma generated with a power
frequency from the VHF band to a microwave band or an insulating
film formed by a sputtering method.
[0161] The oxide semiconductor is highly purified and the interface
between the oxide semiconductor and the gate insulating film is
made favorable, whereby transistor characteristics of off current
of less than or equal to 10.sup.-13 A and a subthreshold swing (S
value) of 0.1 V/dec. (the thickness of the gate insulating film:
100 nm) are highly expected even when the element has a channel
width W of 1.times.10.sup.4 .mu.m and a channel length of 3
.mu.m.
[0162] As described above, the oxide semiconductor is highly
purified so that the oxide semiconductor includes an impurity other
than its main component as little as possible, whereby a transistor
with high mobility can be formed and favorable operation of the
transistor can be obtained.
Embodiment 6
[0163] In this embodiment, the case where a first oxide component
and a second oxide component are formed using oxide semiconductor
materials including different components is described, whereas the
case where the first oxide component and the second oxide component
are formed using oxide semiconductor materials including the same
components is described in Embodiment 5.
[0164] In this embodiment, a first oxide semiconductor layer with a
thickness of 5 nm is formed using a metal oxide target which does
not include Ga but includes In and Zn at 1:1 [atomic ratio]. In the
case of a bottom-gate transistor, because oxide of Ga is an
insulator, higher field effect mobility is obtained in the case
where an In--Zn--O film is used as the first oxide semiconductor
layer than in the case where an In--Ga--Zn--O film is used for the
first oxide semiconductor layer.
[0165] Next, first heat treatment is performed. By the first heat
treatment, crystal growth is performed from a surface of the first
oxide semiconductor layer, whereby a first oxide crystal component
531 which includes a polycrystal is formed so as to reach an
interface between the first oxide semiconductor layer and a base
component 520, although it depends on conditions such as materials
of the first oxide semiconductor layer and the base component 520,
heating temperature, and heating time (see FIG. 17A).
[0166] As the base component 520, an oxide layer, a metal layer, a
nitride layer, and the like can be given. By the first heat
treatment, crystal growth of the first oxide crystal component 531
which includes a polycrystal whose crystal direction is relatively
aligned proceeds from the surface of the first oxide semiconductor
layer in the depth direction regardless of the material of the base
component. The first oxide crystal component 531 is c-axis-aligned
perpendicularly to the surface.
[0167] FIG. 17B is a cross-sectional view at the time just after a
second oxide component 532 is deposited over the first oxide
crystal component 531. In this embodiment, as the second oxide
component 532, an In--Ga--Zn--O film with a thickness of 50 nm is
formed using a target for an In--Ga--Zn--O-based oxide
semiconductor (In:Ga:Zn=1:1:1[atomic ratio]).
[0168] Then, after deposition of the second oxide component 532,
second heat treatment is performed. By the second heat treatment,
crystal growth is performed as illustrated in FIG. 17C. As
illustrated in FIG. 17C, crystal growth proceeds upward toward a
surface of the second oxide component using a crystal layer of the
first oxide crystal component 531 as a seed, so that a second oxide
crystal component 533b is formed.
[0169] The first oxide crystal component 531 obtained by the first
heat treatment is heated again by the second heat treatment to be a
third oxide crystal component 533a whose crystallinity is
increased.
[0170] As the second oxide crystal component 532, an oxide
semiconductor material whose component is different from that of
the first oxide crystal component 531 is used. Therefore, as
illustrated in FIG. 17C, a boundary between the third oxide crystal
component 533a and the second oxide crystal component 533b is
formed. In addition, also by the second heat treatment, almost the
whole first oxide semiconductor layer including the vicinity of an
interface with a gate insulating layer includes a polycrystal.
[0171] The structure of FIG. 17C can be referred to as a two-layer
structure in which the first oxide crystal component 533a is
stacked on and in contact with the base component 520 and the
second oxide crystal component 533b is stacked thereover. By using
the different materials, the field effect mobility of the
transistor can be increased. In addition, by using the In--Zn--O
film which is crystallized more easily than the In--Ga--Zn--O film
as a seed of crystal growth, crystal growth is performed upward
with high efficiency, so that the In--Ga--Zn--O film can include a
polycrystal
[0172] In addition, the case where the materials of the second
oxide crystal component in which crystal growth is performed and
the first oxide crystal component serving as a base are the same is
referred to as homoepitaxy. The case where the materials of the
second oxide crystal component in which crystal growth is performed
and the first oxide crystal component serving as a base are
different is referred to as heteroepitaxy. In this embodiment, any
of homoepitaxy and heteroepitaxy can be employed by selection of
respective materials.
[0173] The conditions of the first heat treatment and the
conditions of the second heat treatment are within a range of the
conditions described in Embodiment 5.
[0174] This embodiment can be freely combined with Embodiment
5.
Embodiment 7
[0175] In this embodiment, the case is described where a transistor
including a stacked oxide material having a crystal layer which is
c-axis-aligned is manufactured and a semiconductor device (also
referred to as a display device) having a display function, which
include the transistors in a pixel portion and further in a driver
circuit is manufactured. Further, part or whole of a driver circuit
using the transistor can be formed over the same substrate as a
pixel portion, whereby a system-on-panel can be obtained.
[0176] The display device includes a display element. As the
display element, a liquid crystal element (also referred to as a
liquid crystal display element) or a light-emitting element (also
referred to as a light-emitting display element) can be used. The
light-emitting element includes, in its category, an element whose
luminance is controlled by a current or a voltage, and specifically
includes, in its category, an inorganic electroluminescent (EL)
element, an organic EL element, and the like. Furthermore, a
display medium whose contrast is changed by an electric effect,
such as electronic ink, can be used.
[0177] Further, the display device includes a panel in which a
display element is sealed. The display device relates to an
embodiment of an element substrate before the display element is
completed in a manufacturing process of the display device, and the
element substrate is provided with a means for supplying a current
to the display element in each of a plurality of pixels.
Specifically, the element substrate may be in a state in which only
a pixel electrode of the display element is formed, a state in
which a conductive layer to be a pixel electrode is formed but is
not etched yet to form the pixel electrode, or any other
states.
[0178] A display device in this specification means an image
display device or a display device.
[0179] In this embodiment, an example of a liquid crystal display
device is described as a semiconductor device which is an
embodiment of the present invention. First, an appearance and a
cross section of a liquid crystal display panel, which is an
embodiment of a semiconductor device, will be described with
reference to FIGS. 18A and 18B. FIG. 18A is a top view of a panel
in which transistors 4010 and 4011 which include a semiconductor
layer of a stacked oxide material including a c-axis-aligned
crystal layer, and a liquid crystal element 4013, which are formed
over a first substrate 4001, are sealed between the first substrate
4001 and a second substrate 4006 with a sealant 4005. FIG. 18B
corresponds to a cross-sectional view taken along line M-N of FIG.
18A.
[0180] The sealant 4005 is provided so as to surround a pixel
portion 4002, a signal line driver circuit 4003, and a scan line
driver circuit 4004 which are provided over the first substrate
4001. The second substrate 4006 is provided over the pixel portion
4002, the signal line driver circuit 4003, and the scan line driver
circuit 4004. Thus, the pixel portion 4002, the signal line driver
circuit 4003, and the scan line driver circuit 4004 are sealed
together with a liquid crystal layer 4008 by the first substrate
4001, the sealant 4005, and the second substrate 4006.
[0181] Further, the pixel portion 4002, the signal line driver
circuit 4003, and the scan line driver circuit 4004 provided over
the first substrate 4001 each include a plurality of transistors.
FIG. 18B illustrates the transistor 4010 included in the pixel
portion 4002 and the transistor 4011 included in the scan line
driver circuit 4004. Insulating layers 4020 and 4021 are provided
over the transistors 4010 and 4011.
[0182] As the transistors 4010 and 4011, a transistor including a
stacked oxide material including a c-axis-aligned crystal layer
described in Embodiment 5 can be used. In this embodiment, the
transistors 4010 and 4011 are n-channel transistors.
[0183] A conductive layer 4040 is provided over part of the
insulating layer 4021, which overlaps with a channel formation
region of an oxide semiconductor layer in the transistor 4011 for
the driver circuit. The conductive layer 4040 is provided at the
position overlapping with the channel formation region of the oxide
semiconductor layer, whereby the amount of change in threshold
voltage of the transistor 4011 between before and after the BT test
can be reduced. The conductive layer 4040 may have the same
potential as or have potential different from that of the gate
electrode layer of the transistor 4011 and can function as a second
gat electrode layer. Alternatively, the potential of the conductive
layer 4040 may be GND or 0 V, or the conductive layer 4040 may be
in a floating state.
[0184] A pixel electrode layer 4030 included in the liquid crystal
element 4013 is electrically connected to the transistor 4010. A
counter electrode layer 4031 of the liquid crystal element 4013 is
provided for the second substrate 4006. A portion where the pixel
electrode layer 4030, the counter electrode layer 4031, and the
liquid crystal layer 4008 overlap with one another corresponds to
the liquid crystal element 4013. Note that the pixel electrode
layer 4030 and the counter electrode layer 4031 are provided with
an insulating layer 4032 and an insulating layer 4033,
respectively, which each function as an alignment film, and the
liquid crystal layer 4008 is sandwiched between the pixel electrode
layer 4030 and the counter electrode layer 4031 with the insulating
layers 4032 and 4033 therebetween.
[0185] Note that as the second substrate 4006, glass or plastics
can be used. As plastic, a fiberglass-reinforced plastics (FRP)
plate, a polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) film, a polyester film, or an
acrylic resin film can be used. In addition, a sheet with a
structure in which an aluminum foil is sandwiched between PVF films
or polyester films can be used.
[0186] A columnar spacer 4035 which can be obtained in such a
manner that an insulating layer is selectively etched is provided
to control a distance (a cell gap) between the pixel electrode
layer 4030 and the counter electrode layer 4031. Alternatively, a
spherical spacer may also be used. The counter electrode layer 4031
is electrically connected to a common potential line formed over
the substrate where the transistor 4010 is formed. In addition,
with the use of a common connection portion, the counter electrode
layer 4031 and the common potential line can be electrically
connected to each other through conductive particles arranged
between the pair of substrates. Note that the conductive particles
are included in the sealant 4005.
[0187] Alternatively, liquid crystal exhibiting a blue phase for
which an alignment film is unnecessary may be used. A blue phase is
one of liquid crystal phases, which appears just before a
cholesteric phase changes into an isotropic phase while temperature
of cholesteric liquid crystal is increased. Since the blue phase
appears within an only narrow range of temperature, liquid crystal
composition containing a chiral agent at 5 wt % or more so as to
improve the temperature range is used for the liquid crystal layer
4008. The liquid crystal composition which includes a liquid
crystal exhibiting a blue phase and a chiral agent has a short
response time of 1 msec or less, has optical isotropy, which makes
the alignment process unneeded, and has a small viewing angle
dependence.
[0188] When liquid crystal exhibiting a blue phase is used, rubbing
treatment on an alignment film is unnecessary; accordingly,
electrostatic discharge damage caused by the rubbing treatment can
be prevented and defects and damage of the liquid crystal display
device in the manufacturing process can be reduced. Thus,
productivity of the liquid crystal display device can be increased.
A transistor including an oxide semiconductor layer particularly
has a possibility that electrical characteristics of the transistor
might significantly change and deviate from the designed range due
to the influence of static electricity. Therefore, it is more
effective to use a liquid crystal material exhibiting a blue phase
for a liquid crystal display device including a transistor
including an oxide semiconductor layer.
[0189] Note that the liquid crystal display device described in
this embodiment is an example of a transmissive liquid crystal
display device; however, the liquid crystal display device can be
applied to either a reflective liquid crystal display device or a
semi-transmissive liquid crystal display device.
[0190] An example of the liquid crystal display device described in
this embodiment is illustrated in which a polarizing plate is
provided on the outer surface of the substrate (on the viewer side)
and a coloring layer and an electrode layer used for a display
element are provided on the inner surface of the substrate in that
order; however, the polarizing plate may be provided on the inner
surface of the substrate. The stacked structure of the polarizing
plate and the coloring layer is not limited to this embodiment and
may be set as appropriate depending on materials of the polarizing
plate and the coloring layer or conditions of manufacturing
process. A light-blocking layer which functions as a black matrix
may be provided when needed.
[0191] In this embodiment, in order to reduce surface unevenness of
the transistors and to improve reliability of the transistors, the
transistors are covered with the insulating layers (the insulating
layer 4020 and the insulating layer 4021) which function as
protective layers or planarizing insulating layers. Note that the
protective layer is provided to prevent entry of a contaminant
impurity such as an organic substance, a metal substance, or
moisture floating in air, and is preferably a dense film. The
protective layer may be formed with a single layer or a stacked
layer of a silicon oxide layer, a silicon nitride layer, a silicon
oxynitride layer, a silicon nitride oxide layer, an aluminum oxide
layer, an aluminum nitride layer, an aluminum oxynitride layer,
and/or an aluminum nitride oxide layer by a sputtering method. In
this embodiment, an example in which the protective layer is formed
by a sputtering method is described; however, there is no
particular limitation on a method, and various kinds of methods may
be used.
[0192] Here, the insulating layer 4020 having a stacked structure
is formed as the protective layer. As a first layer of the
insulating layer 4020, a silicon oxide layer is formed by a
sputtering method. The use of a silicon oxide layer as the
protective layer provides an advantageous effect of preventing
hillock of an aluminum layer used for a source electrode layer and
a drain electrode layer.
[0193] An insulating layer is formed as a second layer of the
protective layer. Here, as a second layer of the insulating layer
4020, a silicon nitride layer is formed by a sputtering method. The
use of the silicon nitride layer as the protective layer can
prevent ions such as sodium ions from entering a semiconductor
region, thereby suppressing variations in electric characteristics
of the transistors.
[0194] The insulating layer 4021 is formed as the planarizing
insulating layer. As the insulating layer 4021, an organic material
having heat resistance such as polyimide, acrylic,
benzocyclobutene, polyamide, or epoxy can be used. Other than such
organic materials, it is also possible to use a low-dielectric
constant material (a low-k material), a siloxane-based resin, PSG
(phosphosilicate glass), BPSG (borophosphosilicate glass), or the
like. Note that the insulating layer 4021 may be formed by stacking
a plurality of insulating layers formed of these materials.
[0195] Note that the siloxane-based resin corresponds to a resin
including a Si--O--Si bond formed using a siloxane-based material
as a starting material. The siloxane-based resin may include as a
substituent an organic group (e.g., an alkyl group or an aryl
group) or a fluoro group. In addition, the organic group may
include a fluoro group.
[0196] A formation method of the insulating layer 4021 is not
particularly limited, and the following method can be employed
depending on the material: a sputtering method, an SOG method, a
spin coating method, a dipping method, a spray coating method, a
droplet discharge method (e.g., an ink-jet method, screen printing,
or offset printing), or the like. Further, the insulating layer
4021 can be formed with a doctor knife, a roll coater, a curtain
coater, a knife coater, or the like. In the case of forming the
insulating layer 4021 using a material solution, annealing (at
300.degree. C. to 400.degree. C.) of the semiconductor layer may be
performed at the same time as a baking step. The baking step of the
insulating layer 4021 also serves as annealing of the semiconductor
layer, whereby a semiconductor device can be manufactured
efficiently.
[0197] The pixel electrode layer 4030 and the counter electrode
layer 4031 can be formed using a light-transmitting conductive
material such as indium oxide containing tungsten oxide, indium
zinc oxide containing tungsten oxide, indium oxide containing
titanium oxide, indium tin oxide containing titanium oxide, indium
tin oxide (hereinafter referred to as ITO), indium zinc oxide,
indium tin oxide to which silicon oxide is added, or the like.
[0198] Conductive compositions including a conductive high molecule
(also referred to as a conductive polymer) can be used for the
pixel electrode layer 4030 and the counter electrode layer 4031.
The pixel electrode formed using the conductive composition
preferably has a sheet resistance of less than or equal to 10000
ohms per square and a transmittance of greater than or equal to 70%
at a wavelength of 550 nm. Further, the resistivity of the
conductive high molecule included in the conductive composition is
preferably less than or equal to 0.1 .OMEGA.cm.
[0199] As the conductive high molecule, a so-called r-electron
conjugated conductive polymer can be used. For example, polyaniline
or a derivative thereof, polypyrrole or a derivative thereof,
polythiophene or a derivative thereof, a copolymer of two or more
kinds of them, and the like can be given.
[0200] A variety of signals and potentials are supplied to the
signal line driver circuit 4003 which is formed separately, and the
scan line driver circuit 4004 or the pixel portion 4002 from an FPC
4018.
[0201] In this embodiment, a connection terminal electrode 4015 is
formed using the same conductive layer as the pixel electrode layer
4030 included in the liquid crystal element 4013. A terminal
electrode 4016 is formed using the same conductive layer as the
source and drain electrode layers included in the transistors 4010
and 4011.
[0202] The connection terminal electrode 4015 is electrically
connected to a terminal included in the FPC 4018 through an
anisotropic conductive layer 4019.
[0203] Note that FIGS. 18A and 18B illustrate an example in which
the signal line driver circuit 4003 is formed separately and
mounted on the first substrate 4001; however, this embodiment is
not limited to this structure. The scan line driver circuit may be
formed over the same substrate as the pixel portion 4002, or only
part of the signal line driver circuit or part of the scan line
driver circuit may be formed over the same substrate as the pixel
portion 4002.
[0204] In addition, if needed, a color filter is provided for each
of the pixels. In addition, a polarizing plate or a diffusion plate
is provided on the outer sides of the first substrate 4001 and the
second substrate 4006. Further, a light source of a backlight is
formed using a cold-cathode tube or an LED. Thus, a liquid crystal
display module is obtained.
[0205] For the liquid crystal display module, a twisted nematic
(TN) mode, an in-plane-switching (IPS) mode, a fringe field
switching (FFS) mode, a multi-domain vertical alignment (MVA) mode,
a patterned vertical alignment (PVA) mode, an axially symmetric
aligned micro-cell (ASM) mode, an optically compensated
birefringence (OCB) mode, a ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC)
mode, an antiferroelectric liquid crystal (AFLC) mode, or the like
can be used.
[0206] Through the above process, a highly reliable liquid crystal
display device can be manufactured.
[0207] By manufacturing a transistor in the driver circuit of the
liquid crystal display device using the method for manufacturing a
stacked oxide material including a c-axis-aligned crystal layer
which is described in Embodiment 5, a normally-off transistor can
be provided in the driver circuit portion and power consumption can
be reduced.
[0208] This embodiment can be implemented in appropriate
combination with the structures described in the other
embodiments.
Embodiment 8
[0209] An appearance and a cross section of a light-emitting
display panel (also referred to as a light-emitting panel) which
corresponds to one embodiment of a semiconductor device will be
described with reference to FIGS. 19A and 19B. FIG. 19A is a plan
view of a panel in which a transistor including a stacked oxide
material including a c-axis-aligned crystal layer and a
light-emitting element, which are formed over a first substrate,
are sealed between the first substrate and a second substrate with
a sealant. FIG. 19B is a cross-sectional view along line H-I of
FIG. 19A.
[0210] A sealant 4505 is provided so as to surround a pixel portion
4502, signal line driver circuits 4503a and 4503b, and scan line
driver circuits 4504a and 4504b which are provided over a first
substrate 4501. In addition, a second substrate 4506 is provided
over the pixel portion 4502, the signal line driver circuits 4503a
and 4503b, and the scan line driver circuits 4504a and 4504b.
Accordingly, the pixel portion 4502, the signal line driver
circuits 4503a and 4503b, and the scan line driver circuits 4504a
and 4504b are sealed together with a filler 4507 by the first
substrate 4501, the sealant 4505, and the second substrate 4506. It
is preferable that a panel be thus packaged (sealed) with a
protective film (such as a laminate film or an ultraviolet curable
resin film) or a cover material with high air-tightness and little
degasification so that the pixel portion 4502, the signal line
driver circuits 4503a and 4503b, and the scan line driver circuits
4504a and 4504b are not exposed to the outside air.
[0211] The pixel portion 4502, the signal line driver circuits
4503a and 4503b, and the scan line driver circuits 4504a and 4504b
formed over the first substrate 4501 each include a plurality of
transistors, and a transistor 4510 included in the pixel portion
4502 and a transistor 4509 included in the signal line driver
circuit 4503a are illustrated as an example in FIG. 19B.
[0212] For the transistors 4509 and 4510, a highly reliable
transistor including a stacked oxide material including a
c-axis-aligned crystal layer described in Embodiment 5 can be
employed. In this embodiment, the transistors 4509 and 4510 are
n-channel transistors.
[0213] A conductive layer 4540 is provided over part of the
insulating layer 4544, which overlaps with a channel formation
region of an oxide semiconductor layer in the transistor 4509 for
the driver circuit. The conductive layer 4540 is provided at the
position overlapping with the channel formation region of the oxide
semiconductor layer, whereby the amount of change in threshold
voltage of the transistor 4509 between before and after the BT test
can be reduced. The conductive layer 4540 may have the same
potential as or have potential different from that of the gate
electrode layer of the transistor 4509 and can function as a second
gate electrode layer. Alternatively, the potential of the
conductive layer 4540 may be GND or 0 V, or the conductive layer
4540 may be in a floating state.
[0214] In the transistor 4509, an insulating layer 4541 is formed
in contact with the semiconductor layer including the channel
formation region, as a protective insulating layer. The insulating
layer 4541 may be formed using a material and a method which are
similar to those of the oxide insulating layer 407 described in
Embodiment 5. Moreover, the insulating layer 4544 functioning as a
planarizing insulating layer covers the transistors in order to
reduce surface unevenness of the transistors. Here, a silicon oxide
layer is formed as the insulating layer 4541 by a sputtering method
in a manner similar to that of the oxide insulating layer 407
described in Embodiment 5.
[0215] The insulating layer 4544 is formed as the planarizing
insulating layer over the insulating layer 4541. The insulating
layer 4544 may be formed using a material and a method which are
similar to those of the insulating layer 4021 described in
Embodiment 7. Here, acrylic is used for the insulating layer
4544.
[0216] Moreover, reference numeral 4511 denotes a light-emitting
element. A first electrode layer 4517 which is a pixel electrode
included in the light-emitting element 4511 is electrically
connected to a source or drain electrode layer of the transistor
4510. Note that the structure of the light-emitting element 4511
is, but not limited to, the stack structure which includes the
first electrode layer 4517, an electroluminescent layer 4512, and
the second electrode layer 4513. The structure of the
light-emitting element 4511 can be changed as appropriate depending
on the direction in which light is extracted from the
light-emitting element 4511, or the like.
[0217] A partition wall 4520 is made of an organic resin layer, an
inorganic insulating layer, or organic polysiloxane. It is
particularly preferable that the partition wall 4520 be formed
using a photosensitive material and an opening be formed over the
first electrode layer 4517 so that a sidewall of the opening is
formed as an inclined surface with continuous curvature.
[0218] The electroluminescent layer 4512 may be formed with a
single layer or a plurality of layers stacked.
[0219] A protective layer may be formed over the second electrode
layer 4513 and the partition wall 4520 in order to prevent oxygen,
hydrogen, moisture, carbon dioxide, or the like from entering into
the light-emitting element 4511. As the protective layer, a silicon
nitride layer, a silicon nitride oxide layer, a DLC layer, or the
like can be formed.
[0220] In addition, a variety of signals and potentials are
supplied to the signal line driver circuits 4503a and 4503b, the
scan line driver circuits 4504a and 4504b, or the pixel portion
4502 from FPCs 4518a and 4518b.
[0221] A connection terminal electrode 4515 is formed from the same
conductive layer as the first electrode layer 4517 included in the
light-emitting element 4511, and a terminal electrode 4516 is
formed from the same conductive layer as the source and drain
electrode layers included in the thin film transistors 4509 and
4510.
[0222] The connection terminal electrode 4515 is electrically
connected to a terminal included in the FPC 4518a through an
anisotropic conductive layer 4519.
[0223] As the second substrate located in the direction in which
light is extracted from the light-emitting element 4511 needs to
have a light-transmitting property. In that case, a
light-transmitting material such as a glass plate, a plastic plate,
a polyester film, or an acrylic film is used.
[0224] As the filler 4507, an ultraviolet curable resin or a
thermosetting resin can be used, in addition to an inert gas such
as nitrogen or argon. For example, PVC (polyvinyl chloride),
acrylic, polyimide, an epoxy resin, a silicone resin, PVB
(polyvinyl butyral), or EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) can be used.
For example, nitrogen is used for the filler.
[0225] In addition, if needed, an optical film, such as a
polarizing plate, a circularly polarizing plate (including an
elliptically polarizing plate), a retardation plate (a quarter-wave
plate or a half-wave plate), or a color filter, may be provided as
appropriate on a light-emitting surface of the light-emitting
element. Further, the polarizing plate or the circularly polarizing
plate may be provided with an anti-reflection film. For example,
anti-glare treatment by which reflected light can be diffused by
projections and depressions on the surface so as to reduce the
glare can be performed.
[0226] Through the above steps, a highly reliable light-emitting
display device (display panel) can be manufactured.
[0227] This embodiment can be implemented in appropriate
combination with the structures described in the other
embodiments.
Embodiment 9
[0228] An example of electronic paper will be described as an
embodiment of a semiconductor device.
[0229] A transistor including a stacked oxide material including a
c-axis-aligned crystal layer obtained by the method described in
Embodiment 5 may be used for electronic paper in which electronic
ink is driven by an element electrically connected to a switching
element. The electronic paper is also referred to as an
electrophoretic display device (an electrophoretic display) and is
advantageous in that it has the same level of readability as plain
paper, it has lower power consumption than other display devices,
and it can be made thin and lightweight.
[0230] Electrophoretic displays can have various modes.
Electrophoretic displays contain a plurality of microcapsules
dispersed in a solvent or a solute, each microcapsule containing
first particles which are positively charged and second particles
which are negatively charged. By applying an electric field to the
microcapsules, the particles in the microcapsules move in opposite
directions to each other and only the color of the particles
gathering on one side is displayed. Note that the first particles
and the second particles each contain pigment and do not move
without an electric field. Moreover, the first particles have a
color which is different from that of the second particles (the
particles may also be colorless).
[0231] Thus, an electrophoretic display is a display that utilizes
a so-called dielectrophoretic effect by which a substance having a
high dielectric constant moves to a high electric field region.
[0232] A solution in which the above microcapsules are dispersed in
a solvent is referred to as electronic ink. This electronic ink can
be printed on a surface of glass, plastic, cloth, paper, or the
like. Furthermore, by using a color filter or particles that have a
pigment, color display can also be achieved.
[0233] When a plurality of the above microcapsules are arranged as
appropriate over an active matrix substrate so as to be interposed
between two electrodes, an active matrix display device can be
completed, and display can be performed by application of an
electric field to the microcapsules. For example, an active matrix
substrate obtained using a transistor including a stacked oxide
material including a c-axis-aligned crystal layer described in
Embodiment 5 can be used.
[0234] Note that the first particles and the second particles in
the microcapsules may each be formed of a single material selected
from a conductive material, an insulating material, a semiconductor
material, a magnetic material, a liquid crystal material, a
ferroelectric material, an electroluminescent material, an
electrochromic material, and a magnetophoretic material, or formed
of a composite material of any of these.
[0235] FIG. 20 illustrates active matrix electronic paper as an
example of a semiconductor device. A transistor 581 used for the
semiconductor device can be manufactured in a manner similar to
that of the transistor described in Embodiment 5 and is a highly
reliable transistor including a stacked oxide material including a
c-axis-aligned crystal layer.
[0236] The electronic paper in FIG. 20 is an example of a display
device using a twisting ball display system. The twisting ball
display system refers to a method in which spherical particles each
colored in black and white are arranged between a first electrode
layer and a second electrode layer which are electrode layers used
for a display element, and a potential difference is generated
between the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer to
control orientation of the spherical particles, so that display is
performed.
[0237] The transistor 581 is a bottom gate transistor and is
covered with an insulating layer 583 which is in contact with a
semiconductor layer. A source or drain electrode layer of the
transistor 581 is in contact with a first electrode layer 587
through an opening formed in the insulating layer 583 and an
insulating layer 585, whereby the thin film transistor 581 is
electrically connected to the first electrode layer 587. Between a
pair of substrates 580 and 596, spherical particles 589 each having
a black region 590a, a white region 590b, and a cavity 594 around
the regions which is filled with liquid are provided between the
first electrode layer 587 and a second electrode layer 588. A space
around the spherical particles 589 is filled with a filler 595 such
as a resin (see FIG. 20).
[0238] The first electrode layer 587 corresponds to a pixel
electrode, and the second electrode layer 588 corresponds to a
common electrode. The second electrode layer 588 is electrically
connected to a common potential line provided over the same
insulating substrate as the transistor 581. With the use of a
common connection portion, the second electrode layer 588 can be
electrically connected to the common potential line through
conductive particles provided between a pair of substrates.
[0239] Further, instead of the twisting ball, an electrophoretic
element can also be used. A microcapsule having a diameter of
approximately 10 .mu.m to 200 .mu.m in which transparent liquid,
positively charged white microparticles, and negatively charged
black microparticles are encapsulated is used. In the microcapsule
which is provided between the first electrode layer and the second
electrode layer, when an electric field is applied by the first
electrode layer and the second electrode layer, the white
microparticles and the black microparticles move to opposite sides,
so that white or black can be displayed. A display element using
this principle is an electrophoretic display element and is
generally called electronic paper. The electrophoretic display
element has higher reflectance than a liquid crystal display
element, and thus, an auxiliary light is unnecessary, power
consumption is low, and a display portion can be recognized even in
a dim place. In addition, even when power is not supplied to the
display portion, an image which has been displayed once can be
maintained. Accordingly, a displayed image can be stored even if a
semiconductor device having a display function (which may be
referred to simply as a display device or a semiconductor device
provided with a display device) is distanced from an electric wave
source.
[0240] Through this process, highly reliable electronic paper can
be manufactured.
[0241] This embodiment can be implemented in appropriate
combination with the structures described in the other
embodiments.
Embodiment 10
[0242] A semiconductor device disclosed in this specification can
be applied to a variety of electronic appliances (including game
machines). Examples of electronic appliances are a television set
(also referred to as a television or a television receiver), a
monitor of a computer or the like, a camera such as a digital
camera or a digital video camera, a digital photo frame, a mobile
phone (also referred to as a cellular phone or a mobile phone
device), a portable game console, a portable information terminal,
an audio reproducing device, a large-sized game machine such as a
pachinko machine, and the like.
[0243] In this embodiment, examples of an electronic appliance
mounted with a display device which can be obtained in any of
Embodiments 7 to 9 are described with reference to FIGS. 21A to 21E
and FIG. 22.
[0244] FIG. 21A illustrates a laptop personal computer manufactured
by mounting at least a display device as a component, which
includes a main body 3001, a housing 3002, a display portion 3003,
a keyboard 3004, and the like. Note that the laptop personal
computer includes the liquid crystal display device described in
Embodiment 7.
[0245] FIG. 21B is a portable information terminal (PDA)
manufactured by mounting at least a display device as a component,
which includes a display portion 3023, an external interface 3025,
an operation button 3024, and the like in a main body 3021. A
stylus 3022 is included as an accessory for operation. Note that
the portable information terminal includes the light-emitting
display device described in Embodiment 8.
[0246] FIG. 21C is an e-book reader manufactured by mounting the
electronic paper described in Embodiment 9 as a component. FIG. 21C
illustrates an e-book reader 2700. For example, the e-book reader
2700 includes two housings, a housing 2701 and a housing 2703. The
housing 2701 and the housing 2703 are combined with a hinge 2711 so
that the e-book reader 2700 can be opened and closed with the hinge
2711 as an axis. With such a structure, the e-book reader 2700 can
operate like a paper book.
[0247] A display portion 2705 and a display portion 2707 are
incorporated in the housing 2701 and the housing 2703,
respectively. The display portion 2705 and the display portion 2707
may display one image or different images. In the case where the
display portion 2705 and the display portion 2707 display different
images, for example, text can be displayed on a display portion on
the right side (the display portion 2705 in FIG. 21C) and images
can be displayed on a display portion on the left side (the display
portion 2707 in FIG. 21C).
[0248] FIG. 21C illustrates an example in which the housing 2701 is
provided with an operation portion and the like. For example, the
housing 2701 is provided with a power switch 2721, an operation key
2723, a speaker 2725, and the like. With the operation key 2723,
pages can be turned. Note that a keyboard, a pointing device, or
the like may also be provided on the surface of the housing, on
which the display portion is provided. Furthermore, an external
connection terminal (an earphone terminal, a USB terminal, a
terminal that can be connected to an AC adapter and various cables
such as a USB cable, or the like), a recording medium insertion
portion, and the like may be provided on the back surface or the
side surface of the housing. Moreover, the e-book reader 2700 may
have a function of an electronic dictionary.
[0249] The e-book reader 2700 may have a configuration capable of
wirelessly transmitting and receiving data. Through wireless
communication, desired book data or the like can be purchased and
downloaded from an electronic book server.
[0250] FIG. 21D is a mobile phone manufactured by mounting at least
a display device as a component, which includes two housings: a
housing 2800 and a housing 2801. The housing 2801 is provided with
a display panel 2802, a speaker 2803, a microphone 2804, a pointing
device 2806, a camera lens 2807, an external connection terminal
2808, and the like. The housing 2801 is also provided with a solar
battery cell 2810 for charging of the portable information
terminal, an external memory slot 2811, and the like. Further, an
antenna is incorporated in the housing 2801.
[0251] The display panel 2802 is provided with a touch panel. A
plurality of operation keys 2805 which is displayed as images is
illustrated by dashed lines in FIG. 21D. Note that a booster
circuit by which a voltage output from the solar cell 2810 is
increased to be sufficiently high for each circuit is also
included.
[0252] In the display panel 2802, the display direction can be
changed as appropriate depending on a usage pattern. Further, the
mobile phone is provided with the camera lens 2807 on the same
surface as the display panel 2802, and thus can be used as a
videophone. The speaker 2803 and the microphone 2804 can be used
for videophone calls, recording and playing sound, and the like as
well as voice calls. Moreover, the housings 2800 and 2801 in a
state where they are developed as illustrated in FIG. 21D can be
slid so that one is lapped over the other; therefore, the size of
the mobile phone can be reduced, which makes the mobile phone
suitable for being carried.
[0253] The external connection terminal 2808 can be connected to an
AC adapter and various types of cables such as a USB cable, and
charging and data communication with a personal computer are
possible. Moreover, a large amount of data can be stored by
inserting a storage medium into the external memory slot 2811 and
can be moved.
[0254] Further, in addition to the above functions, an infrared
communication function, a television reception function, or the
like may be provided.
[0255] FIG. 21E is a digital camera manufactured by mounting at
least a display device as a component, which includes a main body
3051, a display portion (A) 3057, an eyepiece 3053, operation
switches 3054, a display portion (B) 3055, a battery 3056, and the
like.
[0256] FIG. 22 illustrates a television set 9600. In the television
set 9600, a display portion 9603 is incorporated in a housing 9601.
The display portion 9603 can display images. Here, the housing 9601
is supported by a stand 9605.
[0257] The television set 9600 can be operated with an operation
switch of the housing 9601 or a separate remote controller 9610.
Channels and volume can be controlled with an operation key 9609 of
the remote controller 9610, whereby an image displayed on the
display portion 9603 can be controlled. Furthermore, the remote
controller 9610 may be provided with a display portion 9607 for
displaying data output from the remote controller 9610.
[0258] Note that the television set 9600 is provided with a
receiver, a modem, and the like. With the use of the receiver,
general television broadcasting can be received. Moreover, when the
television set 9600 is connected to a communication network with or
without wires via the modem, one-way (from a sender to a receiver)
or two-way (between a sender and a receiver or between receivers)
information communication can be performed.
[0259] In the display portion 9603, a plurality of transistors
described in Embodiment 5 is provided as switching elements of
pixels. As a driver circuit formed over the same insulating
substrate as the display portion 9603, a transistor with high
mobility, which is described in Embodiment 5, is provided.
[0260] This embodiment can be freely combined with any one of
Embodiments 1 to 9.
[0261] This application is based on Japanese Patent Application
serial no. 2009-276918 filed with Japan Patent Office on Dec. 4,
2009, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by
reference.
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