Various embodiments of the present application are directed towards a method for forming a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor comprising an enhanced interfacial layer to reduce breakdown failure. In some embodiments, a bottom electrode layer is deposited over a substrate. A native oxide layer is formed on a top surface of the bottom electrode layer and has a first adhesion strength with the top surface. A plasma treatment process is performed to replace the native oxide layer with an interfacial layer. The interfacial layer is conductive and has a second adhesion strength with the top surface of the bottom electrode layer, and the second adhesion strength is greater than the first adhesion strength. An insulator layer is deposited on the interfacial layer. A top electrode layer is deposited on the insulator layer. The top and bottom electrode layers, the insulator layer, and the interfacial layer are patterned to form a MIM capacitor.

A semiconductor device includes first and second chips that are stacked such that first surfaces of their element layers face each other. Each chip has a substrate, an element layer on a first surface of the substrate, pads on the element layer, and vias that penetrate through the substrate and the element layer. Each via is exposed from a second surface of the substrate and directly connected to one of the pads. The vias include a first via of the first chip directly connected to a first pad of the first chip and a second via of the second chip directly connected to a second pad of the second chip. The pads further include a third pad of the second chip which is electrically connected to the second pad by a wiring in the element layer of the second chip and to the first pad through a micro-bump.

A semiconductor memory device includes a first and second substrates; and a first and second element layers respectively provided on an upper surface of the first and the second substrates. The first and second substrates respectively include a first and second vias. The first and second element layers respectively includes a first and second pads respectively electrically coupled to the first and second vias, and respectively provided on an upper surface of the first and second element layers. The upper surface of the second element layer is arranged so as to be opposed to the upper surface of the first element layer. The first and second pads are electrically coupled and symmetrically arranged with respect to a surface where the first and second element layers are opposed to each other.

A method for forming a structure with a hole on a substrate is disclosed. The method may comprise: depositing a first structure on the substrate; etching a first part of the hole in the first structure; depositing a plug fill in the first part of the hole; depositing a second structure on top of the first structure; etching a second part of the hole substantially aligned with the first part of the hole in the second structure; and, etching the plug fill of the first part of the hole and thereby opening up the hole by dry etching. In this way 3-D NAND device may be provided.

A semiconductor device comprises a first chip bonded on a second chip. The first chip comprises a first substrate and first interconnection components formed in first IMD layers. The second chip comprises a second substrate and second interconnection components formed in second IMD layers. The device further comprises a first conductive plug formed within the first substrate and the first IMD layers, wherein the first conductive plug is coupled to a first interconnection component and a second conductive plug formed through the first substrate and the first IMD layers and formed partially through the second IMD layers, wherein the second conductive plug is coupled to a second interconnection component.

A method for forming a semiconductor device structure and method for forming the same are provided. The method includes hybrid bonding a first wafer and a second wafer to form a hybrid bonding structure, and the hybrid bonding structure comprises a metallic bonding interface and a polymer-to-polymer bonding structure. The method includes forming at least one through-substrate via (TSV) through the second wafer, and the TSV extends from a bottom surface of the second wafer to a top surface of the first wafer.

There is provided a solid-state imaging device including: one or more photoelectric conversion elements provided on side of a first surface of a semiconductor substrate; a through electrode coupled to the one or more photoelectric conversion elements, and provided between the first surface and a second surface of the semiconductor substrate; and an amplifier transistor and a floating diffusion provided on the second surface of the semiconductor substrate, in which the one or more photoelectric conversion elements are coupled to a gate of the amplifier transistor and the floating diffusion via the through electrode.

The invention relates in particular to a method for creating patterns in a layer (410) to be etched, starting from a stack comprising at least the layer (410) to be etched and a masking, layer (420) on top of the layer (410) to be etched, the masking layer (420) having at least one pattern (421), the method comprising at least; a) a step of modifying at least one zone (411) of the layer (410) to be etched via ion implantation (430) vertically in line with said at least one pattern (421); b) at least one sequence of steps comprising: b1) a step of enlarging (440) the at least one pattern (421) in a plane in which the layer (410) to be etched mainly extends; b2) a step of modifying at least one zone (411″, 411″) of the layer (410) to be etched via ion implantation (430) vertically in line with the at least one enlarged pattern (421), the implantation being carried out over a depth less than the implantation depth of the preceding, modification step;) c) a step of removing (461, 462) the modified zones (411, 411′, 41″), the removal comprising a step of etching the modified zones (411, 411′, 411″) selectively with respect to the non-modified zones (412) of the layer (410) to be etched.

Donor structures having a germanium buffer layer for preparing silicon-germanium-on-insulator structures by layer transfer are disclosed. Bonded structures and methods for preparing silicon-germanium-on-insulator structures by a layer transfer method are also disclosed.

A photomask layout includes: a substrate region; a lower stepped region at a region of the substrate region; and a pattern region at least partially crossing the lower stepped region and including at least one notch portion at an area overlapping the lower stepped region. A method of forming a pattern is also provided.