A memory device includes a substrate, a first transistor, a second transistor, and a capacitor. The first transistor is over the substrate and includes a select gate. The second transistor is over the substrate and connected to the first transistor in series, in which the second transistor includes a floating gate. The capacitor is over the substrate and connected to the second transistor, wherein the capacitor includes a top electrode, a bottom electrode in the substrate, and an insulating layer between the top electrode and the bottom electrode. The insulating layer includes nitrogen. A nitrogen concentration of the insulating layer increases in a direction from the top electrode to the bottom electrode.

According to an embodiment, a non-volatile memory device includes a first conductive layer, electrodes, an interconnection layer and at least one semiconductor layer. The electrodes are arranged between the first conductive layer and the interconnection layer in a first direction perpendicular to the first conductive layer. The interconnection layer includes a first interconnection and a second interconnection. The semiconductor layer extends through the electrodes in the first direction, and is electrically connected to the first conductive layer and the first interconnection. The device further includes a memory film between each of the electrodes and the semiconductor layer, and a conductive body extending in the first direction. The conductive body electrically connects the first conductive layer and the second interconnection, and includes a first portion and a second portion connected to the second interconnection. The second portion has a width wider than the first portion.

Numerous embodiments of a precision tuning algorithm and apparatus are disclosed for precisely and quickly depositing the correct amount of charge on the floating gate of a non-volatile memory cell within a vector-by-matrix multiplication (VMM) array in an artificial neural network. Selected cells thereby can be programmed with extreme precision to hold one of N different values.

A semiconductor device includes a substrate including cell and peripheral regions. Landing pads and contact plugs are on the cell and peripheral regions, respectively. A first filler pattern fills regions between the landing pads and between the contact plugs. Outer voids are in the first filler pattern and include first and second outer voids on the cell and peripheral regions, respectively. A second filler pattern covers the first filler pattern and the contact plugs and fills at least a portion of the second outer void. An inner void is in the second outer void and enclosed by the second filler pattern. The first and second filler patterns include the same material. On the cell region, at least a portion of the second filler pattern is located below top surfaces of the landing pads, and a bottom surface of the second filler pattern is partially exposed by the first outer void.

A capacitive element of an integrated circuit includes first and second electrodes. The first electrode is formed by a first electrically conductive layer located above a semiconductor well doped with a first conductivity type. The second electrode is formed by a second electrically conductive layer located above the first electrically conductive layer of the semiconductor well. The second electrode is further formed by a doped surface region within the semiconductor well that is heavily doped with a second conductivity type opposite the first conductivity type, wherein the doped surface region is located under the first electrically conductive layer. An inter-electrode dielectric area electrically separates the first electrode and the second electrode.

The present disclosure provides a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, including: providing a substrate having a plurality of stacked gates with silicon nitride mask layer and silicon oxide mask layer formed on top of the surface; depositing a first carbon-containing silicon oxide thin layer; depositing a second non-carbon-containing silicon oxide layer to fill the gaps between adjacent stacked gates; and planarizing the first silicon oxide thin layer and the second silicon oxide layer by applying the silicon nitride mask layer as a stop layer, removing the second silicon oxide layer, and forming the first sidewalls with the first silicon oxide thin layer on the sides of the stacked gates. The present disclosure further provides a semiconductor device made with the method thereof. The present disclosure can remove the silicon oxide mask layer above the stacked gates through a simple process flow.

The disclosure provides a semiconductor device and a method for fabricating the same, a three-dimensional memory apparatus and a memory system. The semiconductor device includes: a substrate including a first region and a second region, the first region being formed with a recess; a first shallow trench isolation structure and a second shallow trench isolation structure located in the first region and the second region respectively; and a first gate oxide layer on the recess and a second gate oxide layer in the second region and on the second shallow trench isolation structure.

Provided is a memory device including a substrate, a plurality of first stack structures, and a plurality of second stack structures. The substrate includes an array region and a periphery region. The first stack structures are disposed on the substrate in the array region. Each first stack structure sequentially includes: a first tunneling dielectric layer, a first floating gate, a first inter-gate dielectric layer, a first control gate, a first metal layer, a first cap layer, and the first stop layer. The second stack structures are disposed on the substrate in the periphery region. Each second stack structure sequentially includes: a second tunneling dielectric layer, a second floating gate, a second inter-gate dielectric layer, a second control gate, a second metal layer, a second cap layer, and the second stop layer. The first stack structures have a pattern density greater than a pattern density of the second stack structures.

A method for manufacturing a semiconductor structure includes forming a first oxide layer on a wafer; forming a silicon nitride layer on the first oxide layer; forming a plurality of trenches; filling an oxide material in the trenches to form a plurality of shallow trench isolation regions; removing the silicon nitride layer without removing the first oxide layer; using a photomask to apply a photoresist for covering a first part of the first oxide layer on a first area and exposing a second part of the first oxide layer on a second area; and removing the second part of the first oxide layer while remaining the first part of the first oxide layer.

In certain aspects, a method for forming a three-dimensional (3D) memory device is disclosed. A transistor is formed in a first region on a first side of a single crystalline silicon substrate. A step layer is formed in a second region on the first side of the single crystalline silicon substrate. A channel structure extending through a stack structure and in contact with the step layer is formed. The stack structure includes interleaved dielectric layers and conductive layers on the step layer. Part of the single crystalline silicon substrate that is in the second region is removed from a second side opposite to the first side of the single crystalline silicon substrate to expose the step layer from the second side.