A semiconductor structure may include one or more metal gates, one or more channels below the one or more metal gates, a gate dielectric layer separating the one or more metal gates from the one or more channels, and a high-k material embedded in the gate dielectric layer. Both the high-k material and the gate dielectric layer may be in direct contact with the one or more channels. The high-k material may provide threshold voltage variation in the one or more metal gates. The high-k material is a first high-k material or a second high-k material. The semiconductor structure may only include the first high-k material embedded in the gate dielectric layer. The semiconductor structure may only include the second high-k material embedded in the gate dielectric layer. The semiconductor structure may include both the first high-k material and the second high-k material embedded in the gate dielectric layer.

Provided is a ferroelectric field effect transistor (FeFET) which has a wide memory window even if the ferroelectric film thickness is 200 nm or less, and which has excellent data retention characteristics, pulse rewriting endurance and the like. An FeFET which has a structure wherein an insulating body (11) and a gate electrode conductor (4) are sequentially laminated in this order on a semiconductor base (10) that has a source region (12) and a drain region (13). The insulating body (11) is configured by laminating a first insulating body (1) and a second insulating body (2) in this order on the base (10), and the second insulating body (2) is mainly composed of an oxide of strontium, calcium, bismuth and tantalum.

A nano-crystalline high-k film and methods of forming the same in a semiconductor device are disclosed herein. The nano-crystalline high-k film may be initially deposited as an amorphous matrix layer of dielectric material and self-contained nano-crystallite regions may be formed within and suspended in the amorphous matrix layer. As such, the amorphous matrix layer material separates the self-contained nano-crystallite regions from one another preventing grain boundaries from forming as leakage and/or oxidant paths within the dielectric layer. Dopants may be implanted in the dielectric material and crystal phase of the self-contained nano-crystallite regions maybe modified to change one or more of the permittivity of the high-k dielectric material and/or a ferroelectric property of the dielectric material.

Semiconductor device and the manufacturing method thereof are disclosed. An exemplary method comprises forming a first stack structure and a second stack structure in a first area over a substrate, wherein each of the stack structures includes semiconductor layers separated and stacked up; depositing a first interfacial layer around each of the semiconductor layers of the stack structures; depositing a gate dielectric layer around the first interfacial layer; forming a dipole oxide layer around the gate dielectric layer; removing the dipole oxide layer around the gate dielectric layer of the second stack structure; performing an annealing process to form a dipole gate dielectric layer for the first stack structure and a non-dipole gate dielectric layer for the second stack structure; and depositing a first gate electrode around the dipole gate dielectric layer of the first stack structure and the non-dipole gate dielectric layer of the second stack structure.

In a method of manufacturing a semiconductor memory device, a plurality of first conductive structures including a first conductive pattern and a hard mask are sequentially stacked on a substrate. A plurality of preliminary spacer structures including first spacers, sacrificial spacers and second spacers are sequentially stacked on sidewalls of the conductive structures. A plurality of pad structures are formed on the substrate between the preliminary spacer structures, and define openings exposing an upper portion of the sacrificial spacers. A first mask pattern is formed to cover surfaces of the pad structures, and expose the upper portion of the sacrificial spacers. The sacrificial spacers are removed to form first spacer structures having respective air spacers, and the first spacer structures include the first spacers, the air spacers and the second spacers sequentially stacked on the sidewalls of the conductive structures.

A method for fabricating a semiconductor device includes forming a deposition-type interface layer over a substrate, converting the deposition-type interface layer into an oxidation-type interface layer, forming a high-k layer over the oxidation-type interface layer, forming a dipole interface on an interface between the high-k layer and the oxidation-type interface layer, forming a conductive layer over the high-k layer, and patterning the conductive layer, the high-k layer, the dipole interface, and the oxidation-type interface layer to form a gate stack over the substrate.

A semiconductor structure and a method of forming the same are provided. In an embodiment, an exemplary semiconductor structure includes a gate structure. The gate structure includes a gate dielectric layer, an n-type work function layer embedded in the gate dielectric layer, a dielectric capping layer embedded in the n-type work function layer, and a p-type work function layer embedded in the dielectric capping layer. A top surface of the gate structure exposes the n-type work function layer, the dielectric capping layer, and the p-type work function layer. The semiconductor structure also includes a first metal cap on the n-type work function layer and a second metal cap on the p-type work function layer. The first metal cap is spaced apart from the second metal cap. without formed on the dielectric capping layer.

The disclosed technology generally relates to forming a thin film comprising titanium nitride (TiN), and more particularly to forming by a cyclical vapor deposition process the thin film comprising (TiN). In one aspect, a method of forming a thin film comprising TiN comprises exposing a semiconductor substrate to one or more first cyclical vapor deposition cycles each comprising an exposure to a first Ti precursor and an exposure to a first N precursor to form a first portion of the thin film and exposing the semiconductor substrate to one or more second cyclical vapor deposition cycles each comprising an exposure to a second Ti precursor and an exposure to a second N precursor to form a second portion of the thin film, wherein exposures to one or both of the first Ti precursor and the first N precursor during the one or more first cyclical vapor deposition cycles are at different pressures relative to corresponding exposures to one or both of the second Ti precursor and the second N precursor during the one or more second cyclical vapor deposition cycles. Aspects are also directed to semiconductor structures incorporating the thin film and method of forming the same.

A semiconductor device includes a first semiconductor layer below a second semiconductor layer; first and second gate dielectric layers surrounding the first and the second semiconductor layers, respectively; and a gate electrode surrounding both the first and the second gate dielectric layers. The first gate dielectric layer has a first top section above the first semiconductor layer and a first bottom section below the first semiconductor layer. The second gate dielectric layer has a second top section above the second semiconductor layer and a second bottom section below the second semiconductor layer. The first top section has a first thickness. The second top section has a second thickness. The second thickness is greater than the first thickness.

Methods for forming a semiconductor device structure are provided. The methods may include forming a molybdenum nitride film on a substrate by atomic layer deposition by contacting the substrate with a first vapor phase reactant comprising a molybdenum halide precursor, contacting the substrate with a second vapor phase reactant comprise a nitrogen precursor, and contacting the substrate with a third vapor phase reactant comprising a reducing precursor. The methods provided may also include forming a gate electrode structure comprising the molybdenum nitride film, the gate electrode structure having an effective work function greater than approximately 5.0 eV. Semiconductor device structures including molybdenum nitride films are also provided.