Semiconductor structures are provided. A semiconductor structure includes a memory cell and a logic cell. The memory cell includes a latch circuit formed by two cross-coupled inverters, and a pass-gate transistor coupling an output of the latch circuit to a bit line. A first source/drain region of the pass-gate transistor is electrically connected to the bit line through a first contact over the first source/drain region and a first via over the first contact. A second source/drain region of a transistor of the logic cell is electrically connected to a local interconnect line through a second contact over the second source/drain region and a second via over the second contact. Height of the second via is greater than height of the first via. The local interconnect line and the bit line are formed in the same metal layer. The bit line is thicker than the local interconnect line.

A method used in forming a memory array comprising strings of memory cells comprises forming a stack comprising vertically-alternating first tiers and second tiers. Horizontally-elongated trenches are formed into the stack to form laterally-spaced memory-block regions. Bridge material is formed across the trenches laterally-between and longitudinally-along immediately-laterally-adjacent of the memory-block regions. The bridge material comprises longitudinally-alternating first and second regions. The first regions of the bridge material are ion implanted differently than the second regions of the bridge material to change relative etch rate of one of the first or second regions relative to the other in an etching process. The first and second regions are subjected to the etching process to selectively etch away one of the first and second regions relative to the other to form bridges that extend across the trenches laterally-between and longitudinally-spaced-along the immediately-laterally-adjacent memory-block regions. Other embodiments and structure independent of method are disclosed.

A substrate processing method includes: a first etching step of performing a first etching by supplying an etching liquid on a front surface of a substrate while rotating the substrate, wherein the first etching is performed under a condition in which a second etching amount of an etching target film in a second region on a peripheral edge of the front surface, is greater than a first etching amount of the etching target film in a first region on a center side of the front surface; and a second etching step of performing a second etching by supplying the etching liquid to the front surface of the substrate while rotating the substrate, wherein the second etching is performed under a condition in which the second etching amount of the etching target film in the second region of the front surface of the substrate is smaller than the first etching amount of the etching target film in the first region.

A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device includes forming a fin structure including a stacked layer of first semiconductor layers and second semiconductor layers disposed over a bottom fin structure and a hard mask layer over the stacked layer, forming an isolation insulating layer so that the hard mask layer and the stacked layer are exposed from the isolation insulating layer, forming a sacrificial cladding layer over at least sidewalls of the exposed hard mask layer and stacked layer, forming layers of a first dielectric layer and an insertion layer over the sacrificial cladding layer and the fin structure, performing an annealing operation to convert a portion of the layers of the first dielectric layer and the insertion layer from an amorphous form to a crystalline form, and removing the remaining amorphous portion of the layers of the first dielectric layer and the insertion layer to form a recess.

A semiconductor structure and a method for manufacturing the semiconductor structure are provided. The method includes: providing a substrate including a core NMOS area, a core PMOS area and a peripheral NMOS area; performing oxidation treatment on the substrate in the core PMOS area to convert a thickness of a part of the substrate in the core PMOS area into an oxide layer; removing the oxide layer; forming a first semiconductor layer on the remaining substrate in the core PMOS area; forming a gate dielectric layer located on the first semiconductor layer and on the substrate in the core NMOS area and the peripheral NMOS area; and forming a gate on the gate dielectric layer.

The present disclosure relates to a patterning method and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor structure. The patterning method includes: providing a base; forming a first patterned mask layer on a surface of the base, where the first patterned mask layer includes a plurality of first mask structures extending along a first direction, and the first mask structures are arranged at intervals; forming a first dielectric layer on the first patterned mask layer, where the first dielectric layer fills up a spacing region between the first mask structures and covers an upper surface of the first patterned mask layer; and etching the first dielectric layer to form a plurality of second mask structures extending along a second direction, where the second mask structures are arranged at intervals, and the second direction intersects with the first direction; and selectively etching the first mask structure and the second mask structure.

A wet etching method includes: providing a structure including an etching target film into a process bath containing a first etching solution having a first phosphoric acid concentration; performing a first etching process for etching the etching target film with the first etching solution in the process bath; providing a second etching solution having a second phosphoric acid concentration different from the first phosphoric acid concentration by changing a phosphoric acid concentration in the first etching solution; performing a second etching process for etching the etching target film with the second etching solution in the process bath; providing a third etching solution having a third phosphoric acid concentration different from the first and second phosphoric acid concentrations by changing a phosphoric acid concentration in the second etching solution; and performing a third etching process for etching the etching target film with the third etching solution in the process bath.

Structures and formation methods of a semiconductor device structure are provided. The formation method includes forming a fin structure over a semiconductor substrate and forming a first isolation feature in the fin structure. The formation method also includes forming a second isolation feature over the semiconductor substrate after the formation of the first isolation feature. The fin structure and the first isolation feature protrude from the second isolation feature. The formation method further includes forming gate stacks over the second isolation feature, wherein the gate stacks surround the fin structure and the first isolation feature.

A semiconductor memory device includes a stacked structure including a plurality of conductive layers and a plurality of interlayer insulating layers, which are alternately stacked on a substrate; stepped grooves provided in the stacked structure, the stepped grooves having different depths from each other; and an opening portion penetrating the stacked structure to contact the substrate and having steps on sidewalls, the steps having heights corresponding to depth differences between stepped grooves.

A substrate processing method capable of achieving uniform etch selectivity in the entire thickness range of a thin film formed on a stepped structure includes: forming a thin film on a substrate by performing a plurality of cycles including forming at least one layer and applying plasma to the at least one layer under a first process condition; and applying plasma to the thin film under a second process condition different from the first process condition.