Provided herein are methods and apparatuses for controlling uniformity of processing at an edge region of a semiconductor wafer. In some embodiments, the methods include providing a backside inhibition gas as part of a deposition-inhibition-deposition (DID) sequence.

A first dielectric layer is formed on a semiconductor structure. The first dielectric layer has a hardness higher than 10 GPa and a dielectric constant in a range between 1.0 and 4.0. A trench is formed in the first dielectric layer. A conductive feature is formed in the trench in contact with the semiconductor structure. A second dielectric layer is formed over the first dielectric layer and the conductive feature. A via structure is formed in the second dielectric layer in contact with the conductive feature.

A top via interconnect with enlarged via top and a fabrication method therefor. One embodiment may comprise a semiconductor interconnect structure, comprising a first dielectric layer having a top surface, a bottom metal line formed in the dielectric layer, a second dielectric layer deposited above the top surface of the first dielectric layer, a via etched through the second dielectric layer above the bottom metal line, wherein the via exposes at least a portion of the top surface of the first dielectric layer, and a metal stud in the via that extends over the exposed at least a portion of the first dielectric layer. The metal stud in the via may further comprise a shoulder surface and a convex top surface.

Semiconductor devices and methods of manufacturing semiconductor devices are described herein. A method includes implanting neutral elements into a dielectric layer, an etch stop layer, and a metal feature, the dielectric layer being disposed over the etch stop layer and the metal feature being disposed through the dielectric layer and the etch stop layer. The method further includes using a germanium gas as a source for the neutral elements and using a beam current above 6.75 mA to implant the neutral elements.

A semiconductor device includes: a semiconductor chip including a first main surface on one side and a second main surface on the other side; a pn junction portion extending along the first main surface and formed inside the semiconductor chip; a trench configured to penetrate the pn junction portion from the first main surface and partition an element region in the semiconductor chip; an insulating film configured to cover a side wall and a bottom wall of the trench; and an embedded electrode embedded in the trench via the insulating film, wherein the bottom wall of the trench includes a protrusion protruding from a lower end of the insulating film toward an inner upper side of the insulating film in a depth direction of the trench.

A three-dimensional memory device includes a vertical repetition of multiple instances of a unit layer stack, memory openings vertically extending through the vertical repetition, and memory opening fill structures located within the memory openings. Each of the memory opening fill structures contains a respective vertical stack of memory elements. The unit layer stack includes, from bottom to top or from top to bottom, a cavity-free insulating layer that is free of any cavity therein, a first-type electrically conductive layer, a cavity-containing insulating layer including an encapsulated cavity therein, and a second-type electrically conductive layer.

Generally, the present disclosure provides example embodiments relating to conductive features, such as metal contacts, vias, lines, etc., and methods for forming those conductive features. In an embodiment, a structure includes a first dielectric layer over a substrate, a first conductive feature in the first dielectric layer, a second dielectric layer over the first dielectric layer, a second conductive feature in the second dielectric layer, and a blocking region disposed between the first conductive feature and the second conductive feature. The second conductive feature is disposed between and abutting a first sidewall of the second dielectric layer and a second sidewall of the second dielectric layer. The blocking region extends laterally at least from the first sidewall of the second dielectric layer to the second sidewall of the second dielectric layer.

Provided is a semiconductor package structure including a first die having a first bonding structure thereon, a second die having a second bonding structure thereon, a metal circuit structure, and a first protective structure. The second die is bonded to the first die such that a first bonding dielectric layer of the first bonding structure contacts a second bonding dielectric layer of the second bonding structure. The metal circuit structure is disposed over a top surface of the second die. The first protective structure is disposed within the top surface of the second die, and sandwiched between the metal circuit structure and the second die.

A structure and a formation method of a semiconductor device are provided. The method includes forming a conductive feature over a semiconductor substrate and forming a dielectric layer over the conductive feature. The method also includes forming an opening in the dielectric layer to expose the conductive feature. The method further includes forming a conductive material to overfill the opening. In addition, the method includes thinning the conductive material using a chemical mechanical polishing process. A slurry used in the chemical mechanical polishing process includes an iron-containing oxidizer that oxidizes a portion of the conductive material.

A semiconductor structure includes a metal gate structure disposed over a semiconductor substrate, an interlayer dielectric (ILD) layer disposed over the metal gate structure, and a gate contact disposed in the ILD layer and over the metal gate structure, where a bottom surface of the gate contact is defined by a barrier layer disposed over the metal gate structure, where sidewall surfaces of the gate contact are defined by and directly in contact with the ILD layer, and where the barrier layer is free of nitrogen.