A semiconductor wafer is provided, where the semiconductor wafer includes a semiconductor substrate and a hard mask layer formed on the semiconductor substrate. Fins are formed in the semiconductor substrate and the hard mask layer. A spacer is formed on an exposed sidewall of the hard mask layer and the semiconductor substrate. The exposed portion of the semiconductor substrate is etched. A silicon-germanium layer is epitaxially formed on the exposed portions of the semiconductor substrate. An annealed silicon-germanium region is formed by a thermal annealing process within the semiconductor substrate adjacent to the silicon-germanium layer. The silicon-germanium region and the silicon-germanium layer are removed. The hard mask layer and the spacer are removed.

According to yet another non-limiting embodiment, a fin-type field effect transistor (finFET) including a strained channel region includes a semiconductor substrate extending along a first axis to define a length, a second axis perpendicular to the first axis to width, and a third direction perpendicular to the first and second axes to define a height. At least one semiconductor fin on an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate includes a semiconductor substrate portion on an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate, a strain-inducing portion on an upper surface of the semiconductor substrate portion, and an active semiconductor portion defining a strained channel region on an upper surface of the strain-inducing portion. A first height of the semiconductor substrate portion is greater than a second height of the strain-inducing portion.

An embodiment is a method including forming a first gate over a substrate, the first gate having first gate spacers on opposing sidewalls, forming a first hard mask layer over the first gate, forming a second hard mask layer over the first hard mask layer, the second hard mask layer having a different material composition than the first hard mask layer, forming a first dielectric layer adjacent and over the first gate, etching a first opening through the first dielectric layer to expose a portion of the substrate, at least a portion of the second hard mask layer being exposed in the first opening, filling the first opening with a conductive material, and removing the second hard mask layer and the portions of the conductive material and first dielectric layer above the first hard mask layer to form a first conductive contact in the remaining first dielectric layer.

A method for forming a semiconductor device comprises forming a sacrificial gate stack on a substrate, spacers adjacent to the sacrificial gate stack, and a source/drain region on the substrate. A first insulator layer is formed on the source/drain region. A portion of the first insulator layer is removed to expose portions of the spacers. Exposed sidewall portions of the spacers are removed to reduce a thickness of the exposed portions of the spacers. A protective layer is deposited over the exposed sidewalls of the spacers and a second insulator layer is deposited over the protective layer. The sacrificial gate is removed to expose a channel region of the substrate. A gate stack is formed over the channel region of the substrate. Exposed portions of the first insulator layer and the second insulator layer are removed to expose the source/drain region, and a conductive is formed on the source/drain region.

A method for forming a gate tie-down includes opening up a cap layer and recessing gate spacers on a gate structure to expose a gate conductor; forming inner spacers on the gate spacers; etching contact openings adjacent to sides of the gate structure down to a substrate below the gate structures; and forming trench contacts on sides of the gate structure. An interlevel dielectric (ILD) is deposited on the gate conductor and the trench contacts and over the gate structure. The ILD is opened up to expose the trench contact on one side of the gate structure and the gate conductor. A second conductive material provides a self-aligned contact down to the trench contact on the one side and to form a gate contact down to the gate conductor and a horizontal connection within the ILD over an active area between the gate conductor and the self-aligned contact.

A semiconductor structure includes a substrate, first gate structures and second gate structures over the substrate, third epitaxial semiconductor features proximate the first gate structures, and fourth epitaxial semiconductor features proximate the second gate structures. The first gate structures have a greater pitch than the second gate structures. The third and fourth epitaxial semiconductor features are at least partially embedded in the substrate. A first proximity of the third epitaxial semiconductor features to the respective first gate structures is smaller than a second proximity of the fourth epitaxial semiconductor features to the respective second gate structures. In an embodiment, a first depth of the third epitaxial semiconductor features embedded into the substrate is greater than a second depth of the fourth epitaxial semiconductor features embedded into the substrate.

Techniques relate to a gate stack for a semiconductor device. A vertical fin is formed on a substrate. The vertical fin has an upper portion and a bottom portion. The upper portion of the vertical fin has a recessed portion on sides of the upper portion. A gate stack is formed in the recessed portion of the upper portion of the vertical fin.

A method of forming a vertical fin field effect transistor (vertical finFET) with an increased surface area between a source/drain contact and a doped region, including forming a doped region on a substrate, forming one or more interfacial features on the doped region, and forming a source/drain contact on at least a portion of the doped region, wherein the one or more interfacial features increases the surface area of the interface between the source/drain contact and the doped region compared to a flat source/drain contact-doped region interface.

The present description relates to the field of fabricating microelectronic devices having non-planar transistors. Embodiments of the present description relate to the formation of source/drain contacts within non-planar transistors, wherein a titanium-containing contact interface may be used in the formation of the source/drain contact with a discreet titanium silicide formed between the titanium-containing interface and a silicon-containing source/drain structure.

A method of forming a gate structure for a semiconductor device that includes forming first spacers on the sidewalls of replacement gate structures that are present on a fin structure, wherein an upper surface of the first spacers is offset from an upper surface of the replacement gate structure, and forming at least second spacers on the first spacers and the exposed surfaces of the replacement gate structure. The method may further include substituting the replacement gate structure with a functional gate structure having a first width portion in a first space between adjacent first spacers, and a second width portion having a second width in a second space between adjacent second spacers, wherein the second width is greater than the first width.