Methods of forming a semiconductor device are provided. A method according to the present disclosure includes forming, over a workpiece, a dummy gate stack comprising a first semiconductor material, depositing a first dielectric layer over the dummy gate stack using a first process, implanting the workpiece with a second semiconductor material different from the first semiconductor material, annealing the dummy gate stack after the implanting, and replacing the dummy gate stack with a metal gate stack.

Embodiments herein provide for oxygen based treatment of low-k dielectric layers deposited using a flowable chemical vapor deposition (FCVD) process. Oxygen based treatment of the FCVD deposited low-k dielectric layers desirably increases the Ebd to capacitance and reliability of the devices while removing voids. Embodiments include methods and apparatus for making a semiconductor device including: etching a metal layer disposed atop a substrate to form one or more metal lines having a top surface, a first side, and a second side; depositing a passivation layer atop the top surface, the first side, and the second side under conditions sufficient to reduce or eliminate oxygen contact with the one or more metal lines; depositing a flowable layer of low-k dielectric material atop the passivation layer in a thickness sufficient to cover the one or more metal lines; and contacting the flowable layer of low-k dielectric material with oxygen under conditions sufficient to anneal and increase a density of the low-k dielectric material

The present disclosure includes an ion implantation step that creates doped regions in gate dielectric caps. The doped regions have a different material composition and hence a different etch selectivity than un-doped regions in the gate dielectric caps. The doped regions thus allow for slowing down a subsequent etching process of forming gate contact openings.

A method is presented forming a fully-aligned via (FAV) and airgaps within a semiconductor device. The method includes forming a plurality of copper (Cu) trenches within an insulating layer, forming a plurality of ILD regions over exposed portions of the insulating layer, selectively removing a first section of the ILD regions in an airgap region, and maintaining a second section of the ILD regions in a non-airgap region. The method further includes forming airgaps in the airgap region and forming a via in the non-airgap region contacting a Cu trench of the plurality of Cu trenches.

A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes forming first and second pattern structures on first and second regions of a substrate, respectively, forming a preparatory first interlayer insulating layer covering the first pattern structure on the first region, forming a preparatory second interlayer insulating layer covering the second pattern structure on the second region, the preparatory second interlayer insulating layer including a first colloid, and converting the preparatory first and second interlayer insulating layers into first and second interlayer insulating layers, respectively, by annealing the preparatory first and second interlayer insulating layers.

Films that can be useful in large area gap fill applications, such as in the formation of advanced 3D NAND devices, involve processing a semiconductor substrate by depositing on a patterned semiconductor substrate a doped silicon oxide film a doped silicon oxide film configured to expand upon annealing at a temperature above the films glass transition temperature, and annealing the doped silicon oxide film to a temperature above the film glass transition temperature. In some embodiments, reflow of the film may occur. The composition and processing conditions of the doped silicon oxide film may be tailored so that the film exhibits substantially zero as-deposited stress and substantially zero stress shift post-anneal.

The present disclosure is generally related to semiconductor devices, and more particularly to a dielectric material formed in semiconductor devices. The present disclosure provides methods for forming a dielectric material layer by a cyclic spin-on coating process. In an embodiment, a method of forming a dielectric material on a substrate includes spin-coating a first portion of a dielectric material on a substrate, curing the first portion of the dielectric material on the substrate, spin-coating a second portion of the dielectric material on the substrate, and thermal annealing the dielectric material to form an annealed dielectric material on the substrate.

A bonding method of package components and a bonding apparatus are provided. The method includes: providing at least one first package component and a second package component, wherein the at least one first package component has first electrical connectors and a first dielectric layer at a bonding surface of the at least one first package component, and the second package component has second electrical connectors and a second dielectric layer at a bonding surface of the second package component; bringing the at least one first package component and the second package component in contact, such that the first electrical connectors approximate or contact the second electrical connectors; and selectively heating the first electrical connectors and the second electrical connectors by electromagnetic induction, in order to bond the first electrical connectors with the second electrical connectors.

Structural combinations of TIMs and methods of combining these TIMs in semiconductor packages are disclosed. An embodiment forms the structures by selectively metallizing a backside of a semiconductor chip (chip) on chip hot spots, placing a higher performance thermal interface material (TIM) on the metallized hot spots, selectively metalizing an underside of a lid in one or more metalized lid locations, and assembling a lid over the backside of the chip to create an assembly so that metalized lid locations are in contact with the higher performance TIMs. A lower performance TIM fills the region surrounding the higher performance TIM on the underside of the lid enclosing the chips. Disclosed are methods of disposing both solid and dispensable TIMs, curing and not curing the thermal interface, and structures to keep the TIMs in place while assembly the package and compressing dispensable TIMs. Alternative method steps are disclosed, such as: injecting the lower performance TIM through injection holes in a pre-assembled assembly, using solid preform TIMs with cutouts, and using high performance TIM structures that have collapsible rails to prevent lower performance TIM from spilling onto the surface of the higher performance TIM to permit good/bonding.

The present disclosure provides a method for preparing a semiconductor structure. The method includes forming a conductive structure over a semiconductor substrate, and forming a first inter-layer dielectric (ILD) layer over the conductive structure. The method also includes forming a first spacer and a conductive plug penetrating through the first ILD layer. The conductive plug is electrically connected to the conductive structure, and the first spacer is between the first ILD layer and the conductive plug. The method further includes removing a portion of the first ILD layer to form a gap adjacent to the first spacer, and filling the gap with an energy removable material. In addition, the method includes performing a heat treatment process to transform the energy removable material into a second spacer, wherein the first spacer is separated from the first ILD layer by an air gap after the heat treatment process is performed.