The present invention relates to a single-layer polysilicon nonvolatile memory cell, a group structure thereof and a memory including the same. The memory cell includes a selection transistor and a storage transistor, wherein the selection transistor is connected in series with the storage transistor; and the selection transistor and the storage transistor are arranged on a substrate in a mutually perpendicular manner. A memory cell group includes four memory cells, arranged in a center-symmetrical array of two rows×two columns. The memory comprises at least one memory cell group. The memory cell and the memory thereof are used as a one-time programming memory cell and memory, and have the advantages of small area, high programming efficiency and capability, and strong data retention capability.

A semiconductor device with a small variation in characteristics is provided. The semiconductor device includes a first insulator, a transistor over the first insulator, a second insulator over the transistor, a third insulator over the second insulator, a fourth insulator over the third insulator, and an opening region. The opening region includes the second insulator, the third insulator over the second insulator, and the fourth insulator over the third insulator. The third insulator includes an opening reaching the second insulator. The fourth insulator is in contact with a top surface of the second insulator inside the opening.

In an embodiment a non-volatile memory cell includes a substrate, a first body in the substrate, a second body in the substrate, a first storage transistor having a first conduction region and a second conduction region in the first body, the first and second conduction regions delimiting a first channel region in the first body, a first control gate region in the second body, an insulating region overlying the substrate, a single floating gate region extending on the substrate and embedded in the insulating region, the single floating gate region having a first portion on the first body and a second portion on the second body, the first portion and second portion being connected and electrically coupled, a first selection via extending through the insulating region and electrically coupling the first conduction region with a first conduction node, a second selection via extending through the insulating region and electrically coupling the second conduction region with a second conduction node and a first control via extending though the insulating region and electrically coupling the first control gate region with a first control node.

Some embodiments include a string of charge storage devices formed along a vertical channel of semiconductor material; a gate region of a drain select gate (SGD) transistor, the gate region at least partially surrounding the vertical channel; a dielectric barrier formed in the gate region; a first isolation layer formed above the gate region and the dielectric barrier; a drain region of the SGD transistor formed above the vertical channel; and a second isolation layer formed above the first isolation layer and the drain region, wherein the second isolation layer includes a conductive contact in electrical contact with the drain region of the SGD transistor. Additional apparatus and methods are disclosed.

It is an object to provide a semiconductor having a novel structure. In the semiconductor device, a plurality of memory elements are connected in series and each of the plurality of memory elements includes first to third transistors thus forming a memory circuit. A source or a drain of a first transistor which includes an oxide semiconductor layer is in electrical contact with a gate of one of a second and a third transistor. The extremely low off current of a first transistor containing the oxide semiconductor layer allows storing, for long periods of time, electrical charges in the gate electrode of one of the second and the third transistor, whereby a substantially permanent memory effect can be obtained. The second and the third transistors which do not contain an oxide semiconductor layer allow high-speed operations when using the memory circuit.

A synapse array of a neuromorphic device comprises a first input neuron, a second input neuron, an output neuron, and a synapse. The synapse comprises a plurality of pairs of ferroelectric field effect transistors electrically connected to each other in parallel, each of the plurality of pairs of ferroelectric field effect transistors comprises a first ferroelectric field effect transistor and a second ferroelectric field effect transistor, and the first ferroelectric field effect transistor and the second ferroelectric field effect transistor are electrically connected to each other in series.

The semiconductor device includes: a transistor having an oxide semiconductor layer; and a logic circuit formed using a semiconductor material other than an oxide semiconductor. One of a source electrode and a drain electrode of the transistor is electrically connected to at least one input of the logic circuit, and at least one input signal is applied to the logic circuit through the transistor. The off-current of the transistor is preferably 1×10.sup.−13 A or less.

A method for forming an oxide that can be used as a semiconductor of a transistor or the like is provided. In particular, a method for forming an oxide with fewer defects such as grain boundaries is provided. One embodiment of the present invention is a semiconductor device including an oxide semiconductor, an insulator, and a conductor. The oxide semiconductor includes a region overlapping with the conductor with the insulator therebetween. The oxide semiconductor includes a crystal grain with an equivalent circle diameter of 1 nm or more and a crystal grain with an equivalent circle diameter less than 1 nm.

A semiconductor device with a novel structure in which stored data can be held even when power is not supplied and there is no limitation on the number of times of writing. In the semiconductor device, a plurality of memory cells each including a first transistor, a second transistor, and a capacitor is provided in matrix and a wiring (also called a bit line) for connecting one memory cell to another memory cell and a source or drain electrode of the first transistor are electrically connected to each other through a source or drain electrode of the second transistor. Accordingly, the number of wirings can be smaller than that in the case where the source or drain electrode of the first transistor and the source or drain electrode of the second transistor are connected to different wirings. Thus, the degree of integration of the semiconductor device can be increased.

A method used in forming a memory array comprising strings of memory cells comprises forming a conductor tier comprising conductor material on a substrate. A stack comprising vertically-alternating first tiers and second tiers is formed above the conductor tier. The stack comprises laterally-spaced memory-block regions that have horizontally-elongated trenches there-between. Channel-material strings extend through the first tiers and the second tiers. Material of the first tiers is of different composition from material of the second tiers. A lowest of the first tiers comprises sacrificial material of different composition from the first-tier material there-above and from the second-tier material tier there-above. The sacrificial material is of different composition from that of an uppermost portion of the conductor material of the conductor tier. The sacrificial material is isotropically etched selectively relative to the uppermost portion of the conductor material of the conductor tier, selectively relative to the first-tier material there-above, and selectively relative to the second-tier material there-above. After the isotropic etching, conductive material is formed in the lowest first tier that directly electrically couples together the channel material of individual of the channel-material strings and the conductor material of the conductor tier. Other methods and structure independent of method are disclosed.