A memory device includes an alternating stack of insulating layers, dielectric barrier liners and electrically conductive layers located over a substrate and a memory stack structure extending through each layer in the alternating stack. Each of the dielectric barrier liners is located between vertically neighboring pairs of an insulating layer and an electrically conductive layer within the alternating stack. The memory stack structure includes a memory film and a vertical semiconductor channel, the memory film includes a tunneling dielectric layer and a vertical stack of discrete memory-level structures that are vertically spaced from each other without direct contact between them, and each of the discrete memory-level structures includes a lateral stack including, from one side to another, a charge storage material portion, a silicon oxide blocking dielectric portion, and a dielectric metal oxide blocking dielectric portion.

A method of manufacturing a memory structure including following steps is provided. Two gate stack structures are formed on a substrate. A conductive material layer is conformally formed on the two gate stack structures. The conductive material layer includes two protrusions located on the two gate stack structures. Hard mask spacers are formed on two sides of each of the two protrusions. A first etching process is performed to remove a portion of the conductive material layer by using the hard mask spacers as a mask. A second etching process is performed to completely remove the hard mask spacers. Then, a third etching process is performed on the conductive material layer to form a first conductive spacer and a second conductive spacer located on one side and the other side of the two gate stack structures and to form a conductive layer located between the two gate stack structures.

Some embodiments include a NAND memory array having a vertical stack of alternating insulative levels and conductive levels. The conductive levels include control gate regions and distal regions proximate the control gate regions. The control gate regions have front surfaces, top surfaces and bottom surfaces. The top and bottoms surfaces extend back from the front surfaces. High-k dielectric material is along the control gate regions. The high-k dielectric material has first regions along the top and bottom surfaces, and has second regions along the front surfaces. The first regions are thicker than the second regions. Charge-blocking material is adjacent to the second regions of the high-k dielectric material. Charge-storage material is adjacent to the charge-blocking material. Gate-dielectric material is adjacent to the charge-storage material. Channel material is adjacent to the gate-dielectric material. Some embodiments include integrated assemblies. Some embodiments include methods of forming integrated assemblies.

Some embodiments include a method of forming a conductive structure. A metal-containing conductive material is formed over a supporting substrate. A surface of the metal-containing conductive material is exposed to at least one radical form of hydrogen and to at least one oxidant. The exposure alters at least a portion of the metal-containing conductive material to thereby form at least a portion of the conductive structure. Some embodiments include a conductive structure which has a metal-containing conductive material with a first region adjacent to a second region. The first region has a greater concentration of one or both of fluorine and boron relative to the second region.

A semiconductor device includes a stacked structure with insulating layers and conductive layers that are alternately stacked on each other, a hard mask pattern on the stacked structure, a channel structure penetrating the hard mask pattern and the stacked structure, insulating patterns interposed between the insulating layers and the channel structure, wherein the insulating patterns protrude farther towards the channel structure than a sidewall of the hard mask pattern, and a memory layer interposed between the stacked structure and the channel structure, wherein the memory layer fills a space between the insulating patterns.

A semiconductor structure including a semiconductor substrate and at least one patterned dielectric layer is provided. The semiconductor substrate includes a semiconductor portion, at least one first device, at least one second device and at least one first dummy ring. The at least one first device is disposed on a first region surrounded by the semiconductor portion. The at least one second device and the at least one first dummy ring are disposed on a second region, and the second region surrounds the first region. The at least one patterned dielectric layer covers the semiconductor substrate.

A method is provided in which a monitor cell is made that is substantially identical to the flash memory cells of an embedded memory array. The monitor cell is formed simultaneously with the cells of the memory array, and so in certain critical aspects, is exactly comparable. An aperture is formed that extends through the control gate and intervening dielectric to the floating gate of the monitor cell. To prevent silicide contamination during a subsequent CMP process, a silicide protection layer (SPL), such as a resist protective oxide, is formed over exposed portions of the control gate prior to formation of a silicide contact formed on the floating gate. The SPL is formed simultaneously with existing manufacturing processes to avoid additional process steps.

Provided is a memory device including a plurality of stack structures disposed on a substrate; and a dielectric layer. Each stack structure includes a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer, an inter-gate dielectric layer, a metal silicide layer, and a barrier layer. The second conductive layer is disposed on the first conductive layer. The inter-gate dielectric layer is disposed between the first and second conductive layers. The metal silicide layer is disposed on the second conductive layer. The barrier layer is disposed between the metal silicide layer and the second conductive layer. The dielectric layer laterally surrounds a lower portion of the plurality of stack structures to expose a portion of the metal silicide layer of the plurality of stack structures.

A semiconductor memory device includes a substrate having a first active area and a second active area in proximity to the first active area. A trench isolation region is between the first active area and the second active area. A source line region is disposed in the first active area and adjacent to the trench isolation region. An erase gate is disposed on the source line region. A floating gate is disposed on a first side of the erase gate. A first control gate is disposed on the floating gate. A first word line is disposed adjacent to the floating gate and the first control gate and insulated therefrom. A second control gate is disposed on a second side of the erase gate and directly on the trench isolation region. A second word line is disposed adjacent to the second control gate and insulated therefrom.

Disclosed are methods and systems for depositing layers comprising a transition metal and a group 13 element. The layers are formed onto a surface of a substrate. The deposition process may be a cyclical deposition process. Exemplary structures in which the layers may be incorporated include field effect transistors, VNAND cells, metal-insulator-metal (MIM) structures, and DRAM capacitors.