Application of synopsys’ taurus TCAD in developing CMOS fabrication process modules

Technology CAD (TCAD) refers to the use of computer simulation to model semiconductor processing and device operation. TCAD has two major functions namely process simulation and device simulation. It performs the semiconductor process simulation and the device simulation by taking the description of the transistor layout input to simulate the fabrication process and device behavior before the actual silicon is made. This paper illustrates the use of Synopsys Taurus TCAD to develop and simulate the fabrication and electrical behavior of NMOS and PMOS transistors in the complete CMOS process flow. Illustration also includes how mask information extracted from a layout by Taurus Layout is used by TSUPREM-4 to produce an output file containing complete structure, mesh and doping information that can be read into MEDICI device simulator to extract electrical characteristics. The specified process includes, not only steps required to simulate a MOSFET device, but also all steps of the hypothetical CMOS process.