A method for manufacturing a semiconductor includes: providing a substrate; forming a polysilicon layer on the substrate, a surface, away from the substrate, of the polysilicon layer having a native oxide; and performing a nitriding treatment to the native oxide, to nitrogenize the native oxide into a silicon oxynitride layer. The native oxide is nitrogenized into the silicon oxynitride layer.

Photodefinable alignment layers for chemical assisted patterning and approaches for forming photodefinable alignment layers for chemical assisted patterning are described. An embodiment of the invention may include disposing a chemically amplified resist (CAR) material over a hardmask that includes a switch component. The CAR material may then be exposed to form exposed resist portions. The exposure may produces acid in the exposed portions of the CAR material that interact with the switch component to form modified regions of the hardmask material below the exposed resist portions.

A stepped substrate coating composition for forming a coating film having planarity on a substrate, including: a main agent and a solvent, the main agent containing a compound (A), a compound (B), or a mixture thereof, the compound (A) having a partial structure Formula (A-1) or (A-2): ##STR00001##
and the compound (B) having at least one partial structure selected from Formulae (B-1)-(B-5), or having a partial structure including a combination of a partial structure of Formula (B-6) and a partial structure of Formula (B-7) or (B-8): ##STR00002##
where the composition is cured by photoirradiation or by heating at 30° C.-300° C.; and the amount of the main agent in the solid content of the composition is 95%-100% by mass.

A patterning method includes the following steps. A mask layer is formed on a material layer. A first hole is formed in the mask layer by a first photolithography process. A first mask pattern is formed in the first hole. A second hole is formed in the mask layer by a second photolithography process. A first spacer is formed on an inner wall of the second hole. A second mask pattern is formed in the second hole after the step of forming the first spacer. The first spacer surrounds the second mask pattern in the second hole. The mask layer and the first spacer are removed. The pattern of the first mask pattern and the second mask pattern are transferred to the material layer by an etching process.

Methods and materials for making a semiconductor device are described. The method includes forming a surface preparation layer over the semiconductor substrate. The surface preparation material layer includes an aziridine structure. A coating layer may then be deposited on the surface preparation material layer.

A material for forming an organic film using a polymer including an imide group for forming an organic underlayer film that cures under film-forming conditions in the air and in an inert gas, generates no by-product in heat resistance and embedding and flattening characteristics of a pattern formed on a substrate, also adhesiveness to a substrate for manufacturing a semiconductor apparatus, a method for forming an organic film, and a patterning process. The material includes (A) a polymer having a repeating unit represented by the following general formula (1A) whose terminal group is a group represented by either of the following general formulae (1B) or (1C), and (B) an organic solvent: ##STR00001##
wherein, W.sub.1 represents a tetravalent organic group, and W.sub.2 represents a divalent organic group: ##STR00002##
wherein, R.sub.1 represents any of the groups represented by the following formula (1D), and two or more of R.sub.1s may be used in combination. ##STR00003##

A chemical pattern layer including an orientation control material and a prepattern material is formed over a substrate. The chemical pattern layer includes alignment-conferring features and additional masking features. A self-assembling material is applied and self-aligned over the chemical pattern layer. The polymeric block components align to the alignment-conferring features, while the alignment is not altered by the additional masking features. A first polymeric block component is removed selective to a second polymeric block component by an etch to form second polymeric block component portions having a pattern. A composite pattern of the pattern of an etch-resistant material within the chemical pattern layer and the pattern of the second polymeric block component portions can be transferred into underlying material layers employing at least another etch.

Disclosed herein is a method comprising disposing a mat composition on a surface of a semiconductor substrate; where the mat composition comprises a random copolymer comprising a first acrylate unit and a second unit; where the copolymer does not comprise a polystyrene or a polyepoxide; crosslinking the random copolymer; disposing a brush backfill composition on the substrate; such that the brush backfill composition and the mat composition alternate with each other; disposing on the brush backfill composition and on the mat composition a block copolymer that undergoes self assembly; and etching the block copolymer to create uniformly spaced channels in the semiconductor substrate.

Methods of fabricating semiconductor devices may include forming a hardmask layer including a photosensitive hardmask material on lower structures. The hardmask layer may include a lower portion and an upper portion thereon. An exposing and developing process may be performed on the hardmask layer to remove the upper portion of the hardmask layer and thereby form a hardmask structure with a substantially flat top surface.

A composition for forming a film capable of effectively functioning as a resist underlayer film exhibiting resistance to a solvent in a composition for forming a resist film serving as an upper layer, favorable etching property to a fluorine-containing gas, and favorable lithographic property. A film-forming composition including a hydrolysis condensate prepared through hydrolysis and condensation of a hydrolyzable silane compound by using two or more acidic compounds, and a solvent, the film-forming composition being characterized in that: the hydrolyzable silane compound contains an amino-group-containing silane of the following Formula (1):

R.sup.1.sub.aR.sup.2.sub.bSi(R.sup.3).sub.4−(a+b)  (1)