Methods of forming a slurry and methods of performing a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process utilized in manufacturing semiconductor devices, as described herein, may be performed on semiconductor devices including integrated contact structures with ruthenium (Ru) plug contacts down to a semiconductor substrate. The slurry may be formed by mixing a first abrasive, a second abrasive, and a reactant with a solvent. The first abrasive may include a first particulate including titanium dioxide (TiO.sub.2) particles and the second abrasive may include a second particulate that is different from the first particulate. The slurry may be used in a CMP process for removing ruthenium (Ru) materials and dielectric materials from a surface of a workpiece resulting in better WiD loading and planarization of the surface for a flat profile.

A layer of conductive material is formed above a bottom-most layer of interconnect structures in an interconnect layer of a semiconductor device, and the layer of conductive material is etched to define the bottom-most layer of metallization structures from the layer of conductive material. To reduce the likelihood of collapse of the free-standing metallization structures, the exposed sidewall surfaces of the free-standing metallization structures may be oxidized to form metal-oxide sidewalls for the free-standing metallization structures. The metal-oxide sidewalls may be formed using a self-aligned oxidation technique that specifically targets the sidewalls of the free-standing metallization structures for oxidation. The metal-oxide sidewalls may be formed of a metal-oxide material that increases the mechanical strength of the free-standing metallization structures, which enables the free-standing metallization structures to resist collapsing.

According to one embodiment, there is provided a semiconductor manufacturing tool that is capable of further facilitating an electrochemical process. The semiconductor manufacturing tool according to the embodiment includes a plurality of process baths, an anode and a cathode, and an electrical circuit. Each of the plurality of process baths is capable of containing a substrate processing liquid and a first substrate. The anode and the cathode are provided for each of the process baths. The electrical circuit electrically connects a plurality of first substrates held in the substrate processing liquid via the anode and the cathode and supplies electrical power via the anode and the cathode for subjecting the plurality of first substrates to an electrochemical process.