Disclosed are a memory device including a vertical stack structure and a method of manufacturing the memory device. The memory device includes an insulating structure having a shape including a first surface and a protrusion portion protruding in a first direction from the first surface, a recording material layer covering the protrusion portion along a protruding shape of the protrusion portion and extending to the first surface on the insulating structure a channel layer on the recording material layer along a surface of the recording material layer, a gate insulating layer on the channel layer, and a gate electrode formed at a location on the gate insulating layer to face a second surface which is a protruding upper surface of the protrusion portion, wherein a void exists between the gate electrode and the insulating structure, defined by the insulating structure and the recording material layer.

Some embodiments include apparatuses and methods using first and second select gates coupled in series between a conductive line and a first memory cell string of a memory device, and third and fourth select gates coupled in series between the conductive line and a second memory cell string of the memory device. The memory device can include first, second, third, and fourth select lines to provide first, second, third, and fourth voltages, respectively, to the first, second, third, and fourth select gates, respectively, during an operation of the memory device. The first and second voltages can have a same value. The third and fourth voltages can have different values.

Semiconductor devices are provided including a plurality of nonlinear bit lines formed on a substrate including a plurality of active areas; a plurality of word lines that pass through the plurality of active areas; an integral spacer that covers two sidewalls of the plurality of nonlinear bit lines and defines a plurality of spaces that expose two adjacent ones of the plurality of active areas; two conductive patterns that respectively abut on the two adjacent active areas in one of the plurality of spaces that is selected; and a contact separating insulation layer that is formed between the two conductive patterns in the one selected space.

A voltage applied to a bit line or to a source line is reduced to a value allowing a first or second select gate structure to block electrical connection between the bit line and a channel layer or between the source line and the channel layer, irrespective of a voltage needed to inject charge into a charge storage layer by a quantum tunneling effect. In accordance with the reduction in voltage(s) applied to the bit line and the source line, thickness of each of a first and second select gate insulating films of the first and second select gate structure is reduced. High-speed operation is achieved correspondingly. With the reduction in voltage(s) applied to the bit and source lines, thickness of a gate insulating film of a field effect transistor in a peripheral circuit controlling a memory cell is reduced. The area of the peripheral circuit is reduced correspondingly.

An artificial neuron semiconductor device having a three-dimensional structure includes a first electrode to which a clock signal is applied, a second electrode in which an output signal is generated, an insulation column, a plurality of electrode layers for receiving an electrical signal from at least one synapse circuit, and a phase change layer which is divided into at least two parts by the insulation column and is in contact with at least two side surfaces of the insulation column, and the phase change layer is phase-changed by the plurality of electrode layers.

An integrated circuit (IC) device includes: a channel region that extends on the substrate to penetrate a plurality of word lines; a bit line contact pad that contacts an upper surface of the channel region; a bit line that contacts the bit line contact pad and extends on the bit line contact pad in a direction parallel to the main surface of the substrate; a common source line that partially fills a word line cut region and has a height lower than that of the channel region; and a common source via contact that contacts an upper surface of the common source line in the word line cut region.

The object of the present invention is to provide a current source which is capable of suppressing an increase in circuit size and by which a highly accurate constant current extremely stable to manufacturing variations or temperature fluctuations can be obtained. A current source circuit is provided with a nonvolatile storage element having a control gate region and a source region and operating as a field-effect transistor, and is configured to output a current in a state where a bias is applied between the control gate region and the source region.

A silicide layer on a gate electrode of a MONOS memory is prevented from being disconnected, and a property of a MISFET is improved. As means for that, when a memory cell and a MISFET formed by so-called gate-last process are mixedly mounted, a silicide layer on a source/drain region is formed by a salicide process with relatively high temperature heat treatment, and then, a silicide layer is formed on each of the control gate electrode and the memory gate electrode of the memory cell by a salicide process with relatively low temperature heat treatment.

According to one embodiment, a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device includes forming a hole extending in a first direction in a workpiece. The method includes forming a first film on an upper surface of the workpiece and an upper portion of a side wall of the hole. The method includes forming a second film on the first film. The method includes removing portions of the first and second films from the upper surface of the workpiece so that at least a part of the first and second films formed on the upper portion remain. The method includes removing at least a part of a portion of the workpiece which is exposed through the hole using a second etchant. An etching rate of the first etchant for the first film is higher than an etching rate of the first etchant for the second film.

A semiconductor device includes a plurality of nonvolatile memory cells (1). Each of the nonvolatile memory cells comprises a MOS type first transistor section (3) used for information storage, and a MOS type second transistor section (4) which selects the first transistor section. The second transistor section has a bit line electrode (16) connected to a bit line, and a control gate electrode (18) connected to a control gate control line. The first transistor section has a source line electrode (10) connected to a source line, a memory gate electrode (14) connected to a memory gate control line, and a charge storage region (11) disposed directly below the memory gate electrode. A gate withstand voltage of the second transistor section is lower than that of the first transistor section. Assuming that the thickness of a gate insulating film of the second transistor section is defined as tc and the thickness of a gate insulating film of the first transistor section is defined as tm, they have a relationship of tc<tm.