A structure and formation method of a semiconductor device is provided. The semiconductor device structure includes an epitaxial structure over a semiconductor substrate. The semiconductor device structure also includes a dielectric fin over the semiconductor substrate. The dielectric fin extends upwards to exceed a bottom surface of the epitaxial structure. The dielectric fin has a dielectric structure and a protective shell, and the protective shell extends along sidewalls and a bottom of the dielectric structure. The protective shell has a first average grain size, and the dielectric structure has a second average grain size. The first average grain size is larger than the second average grain size.

A semiconductor device with different isolation structures and a method of fabricating the same are disclosed. The a method includes forming first and second fin structures on a substrate, forming a dummy fin structure on the substrate and between the first and second fin structures, forming a polysilicon structure on the dummy fin structure, forming source/drain regions on the first and second fin structures, and replacing the polysilicon structure with a dummy gate structure. A top portion of the dummy gate structure is formed wider than a bottom portion of the dummy gate structure.

A nanowire semiconductor device having a high-quality epitaxial layer and a method of manufacturing the same are provided. According to an embodiment, the semiconductor device may include: a substrate; one or more nanowires spaced apart from the substrate, wherein the nanowires each extend along a curved longitudinal extending direction; and one or more semiconductor layers formed around peripheries of the respective nanowires to at least partially surround the respective nanowires, wherein the respective semiconductor layers around the respective nanowires are spaced apart from each other.

Semiconductor structures including active fin structures, dummy fin structures, epitaxy layers, a Ge containing oxide layer and methods of manufacture thereof are described. By implementing the Ge containing oxide layer on the surface of the epitaxy layers formed on the source/drain regions of some of the FinFET devices, a self-aligned epitaxy process is enabled. By implementing dummy fin structures and a self-aligned etch, both the epitaxy layers and metal gate structures from adjacent FinFET devices are isolated in a self-aligned manner.

Gate-all-around integrated circuit structures having germanium nanowire channel structures, and methods of fabricating gate-all-around integrated circuit structures having germanium nanowire channel structures, are described. For example, an integrated circuit structure includes a vertical arrangement of horizontal nanowires above a fin, each of the nanowires including germanium, and the fin including a defect modification layer on a first semiconductor layer, a second semiconductor layer on the defect modification layer, and a third semiconductor layer on the second semiconductor layer. A gate stack is around the vertical arrangement of horizontal nanowires. A first epitaxial source or drain structure is at a first end of the vertical arrangement of horizontal nanowires, and a second epitaxial source or drain structure is at a second end of the vertical arrangement of horizontal nanowires.

A semiconductor device includes a first source/drain region and a second source/drain region disposed on opposite sides of a plurality of conductive layers. A dielectric layer overlies the first source/drain region, the second source/drain region, and the plurality of conductive layers. An electrical contact extends through the dielectric layer and the first source/drain region, where a first surface of the electrical contact is a surface of the electrical contact that is closest to the substrate, a first surface of the plurality of conductive layers is a surface of the plurality of conductive layers that is closest to the substrate, and the first surface of the electrical contact is closer to the substrate than the first surface of the plurality of conductive layers.

A semiconductor structure includes a semiconductor fin protruding from a substrate, an S/D feature disposed over the semiconductor fin, and a first dielectric fin and a second dielectric fin disposed over the substrate, where the semiconductor fin is disposed between the first dielectric fin and the second dielectric fin, where a first air gap is enclosed by a first sidewall of the epitaxial S/D feature and the first dielectric fin, and where a second air gap is enclosed by a second sidewall of the epitaxial S/D feature and the second dielectric fin.

A method for shallow trench isolation structures in a semiconductor device and a semiconductor device including the shallow trench isolation structures are disclosed. In an embodiment, the method may include forming a trench in a substrate; depositing a first dielectric liner in the trench; depositing a first shallow trench isolation (STI) material over the first dielectric liner, the first STI material being deposited as a conformal layer; etching the first STI material; depositing a second STI material over the first STI material, the second STI material being deposited as a flowable material; and planarizing the second STI material such that top surfaces of the second STI material are co-planar with top surfaces of the substrate.

Embodiments of the invention are directed to a fabrication method that includes forming a first-region channel over a first region of a substrate, wherein the first-region channel further includes lateral sidewalls having a length (L), a first end sidewall having a first width (W1), and a second end sidewall having a second width (W2). L is greater than W1, and L is greater than W2. A first stress anchor is formed on the first end sidewall of the first-region channel, and a second stress anchor is formed on the second end sidewall of the first-region channel. The first stress anchor is configured to impart strain through the first end sidewalls to the first-region channel. The second stress anchor is configured to impart strain through the second end sidewalls to the first-region channel.

A semiconductor device is described. An isolation region is disposed on the substrate. A plurality of channels extend through the isolation region from the substrate. The channels including an active channel and an inactive channel. A dummy fin is disposed on the isolation region and between the active channel and the inactive channel. An active gate is disposed over the active channel and the inactive channel, and contacts the isolation region. A dielectric material extends through the active gate and contacts a top of the dummy fin. The inactive channel is a closest inactive channel to the dielectric material. A long axis of the active channel extends in a first direction. A long axis of the active gate extends in a second direction. The active channel extends in a third direction from the substrate. The dielectric material is closer to the inactive channel than to the active channel.