Semiconductor devices are provided. A semiconductor device includes gate electrodes on a substrate and stacked perpendicularly to an upper surface of the substrate. The semiconductor device includes interlayer insulating layers alternately stacked with the gate electrodes. Moreover, the semiconductor device includes channel structures passing through the gate electrodes. Each of the channel structures includes a channel layer extending perpendicularly to the upper surface of the substrate, a tunneling insulating layer on the channel layer, charge storage layers on the tunneling insulating layer in respective regions between the gate electrodes and a side surface of the tunneling insulating layer, and first blocking insulating layers on the charge storage layers, respectively. A first layer of the first blocking insulating layers is on an upper surface, a lower surface, and a side surface of a first layer of the charge storage layers.

A vertical NAND flash memory device and a method of manufacturing the same are provided. The vertical NAND flash memory device includes a charge trap layer arranged on an inner wall of a channel hole vertically formed on a substrate. The charge trap layer includes nanostructures distributed in a base. The nanostructures may include a material having a trap density of about 110.sup.19 cm.sup.3 to about 1010.sup.19 cm.sup.3, and the base may include a material having a conduction band offset (CBO) of about 0.5 eV to about 3.5 eV with respect to the material included in the nanostructures.

A semiconductor memory device may include a substrate, first and second impurity regions on the substrate, first and second gate insulating layers sequentially stacked on the substrate and extended in a direction between the first and second impurity regions, and a gate electrode on the second gate insulating layer. The first and second impurity regions may have different conductivity types from each other, a bottom surface of the first gate insulating layer may be in direct contact with a top surface of the substrate, and the second gate insulating layer may include a ferroelectric material.

Systems, apparatuses and methods may provide for memory cell technology comprising a control gate, a conductive channel, and a charge storage structure coupled to the control gate and the conductive channel, wherein the charge storage structure includes a polysilicon layer and a metal layer. In one example, the metal layer includes titanium nitride or other high effective work function metal.

A control method for a non-volatile memory is provided. After the non-volatile memory is enabled, a judging step is performed to judge whether the non-volatile memory enters a read mode, a program mode or an erase mode. If the judging result indicates that the non-volatile memory enters the read mode, the program mode or the erase mode, a worst threshold voltage of plural reference cells of the non-volatile memory is searched. Then, at least one of a control voltage for read action, a control voltage for program verify and a control voltage for erase verify is determined. Then, a read action, a program action or an erase action is performed on plural data cells of the non-volatile memory.

A three-dimensional nonvolatile memory device and a method for fabricating the same include a semiconductor substrate, a plurality of active pillars, a plurality of gate electrodes, and a plurality of supporters. The semiconductor substrate includes a memory cell region and a contact region. The active pillars extend in the memory cell region perpendicularly to the semiconductor substrate. The gate electrodes intersect the active pillars, extend from the memory cell region to the contact region and are stacked on the semiconductor substrate. The supporters extend in the contact region perpendicularly to the semiconductor substrate to penetrate at least one or more of the gate electrodes.

A memory device includes an alternating stack of insulating layers and electrically conductive layers and including stepped surfaces in a staircase region, a retro-stepped dielectric material portion overlying the stepped surfaces of the alternating stack, a memory opening vertically extending through the alternating stack, a memory opening fill structure located in the memory opening, and vertically-extending silicon oxycarbide material portions located between the retro-stepped dielectric material portion and the electrically conductive layers.

Embodiments of three-dimensional (3D) memory devices and methods for forming the same are disclosed. In an example, a 3D memory device includes a substrate and a channel structure extending vertically above the substrate and having a plum blossom shape including a plurality of petals in a plan view. The channel structure includes, in each of the plurality of petals, a semiconductor channel and a channel plug above and in contact with the semiconductor channel.