A method of forming a semiconductor device includes loading a first wafer and a second wafer into a wafer bonding system. A relative humidity within the wafer bonding system is measured a first time. After measuring the relative humidity, the relative humidity within the wafer bonding system may be adjusted to be within a desired range. When the relative humidity is within the desired range, the first wafer is bonded to the second wafer.

Semiconductor devices and methods of manufacturing the same are described. Transistors are fabricated using a standard process flow. A via opening extending from the top surface of the substrate to a bottom surface of the wafer device is formed, thus allowing nano TSV for high density packaging, as well as connecting the device to the backside power rail. A metal is deposited in the via opening, and the bottom surface of the wafer device is bound to a bonding wafer. The substrate is optionally thinned, and a contact electrically connected to the metal is formed.

Techniques for joining dissimilar materials in microelectronics are provided. Example techniques direct-bond dissimilar materials at an ambient room temperature, using a thin oxide, carbide, nitride, carbonitride, or oxynitride intermediary with a thickness between 100-1000 nanometers. The intermediary may comprise silicon. The dissimilar materials may have significantly different coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs) and/or significantly different crystal-lattice unit cell geometries or dimensions, conventionally resulting in too much strain to make direct-bonding feasible. A curing period at ambient room temperature after the direct bonding of dissimilar materials allows direct bonds to strengthen by over 200%. A relatively low temperature anneal applied slowly at a rate of 1° C. temperature increase per minute, or less, further strengthens and consolidates the direct bonds. The example techniques can direct-bond lithium tantalate LiTaO.sub.3 to various conventional substrates in a process for making various novel optical and acoustic devices.

A semiconductor device is provided, including a buried oxide layer, having a first side and a second side. A silicon-based device layer is disposed on the first side of the buried oxide layer. The silicon-based device layer includes a first interconnection structure. A semiconductor-based device layer is disposed on the second side of the buried oxide layer. The semiconductor-based device layer includes a second interconnection structure.

A method of fabricating a semiconductor structure and the semiconductor structure are disclosed. The method uses high flow rate of an etchant and an optimized scan pattern, so that the obtained semiconductor structure is a device upside-down bonded to the carrier wafer without any silicon remaining and is ready for subsequent lithography process for back via contact.

A semiconductor-on-insulator substrate for use in RF applications, such as a silicon-on-insulator substrate, comprises a semiconductor top layer, a buried oxide layer and a passivation layer over a support substrate. In addition, a penetration layer is provided between the passivation layer and the silicon support substrate to ensure sufficient high resistivity below RF features and avoid increased migration of dislocations in the support substrate. RF devices may be fabricated on and/or in such a semiconductor-on-insulator substrate.

A semiconductor-on-insulator (e.g., silicon-on-insulator) structure having superior radio frequency device performance, and a method of preparing such a structure, is provided by utilizing a single crystal silicon handle wafer sliced from a float zone grown single crystal silicon ingot.

A device chip manufacturing method includes attaching a wafer to the first surface of a semiconductor ingot, separating the semiconductor ingot into a subject part and a remaining part after attachment, the subject part being attached to the wafer to form a laminated wafer having a front side as an exposed surface of the subject part and a back side as an exposed surface of the wafer, setting a plurality of crossing division lines on the front side of the laminated wafer to thereby define a plurality of separate regions after separation, and next forming a plurality of devices in the respective separate regions, and then dividing the laminated wafer along the division lines after forming the devices, thereby forming the plural device chips including the respective devices.

The present disclosure, in some embodiments, relates to a semiconductor structure. The semiconductor structure includes a handle substrate having a plurality of bulk macro defects (BMDs). An insulating layer is disposed onto a top surface of the handle substrate. A device layer, including a semiconductor material, is disposed onto the insulating layer. The handle substrate has a first denuded region and a second denuded region that vertically surround a central region of the handle substrate. The central region has a higher concentration of the plurality of BMDs than both the first denuded region and the second denuded region.

A cost effective process flow for manufacturing semiconductor on insulator structures is parallel is provided. Each of the multiple semiconductor-on-insulator composite structures prepared in parallel comprises a charge trapping layer (CTL).