Abstract: A method of forming a FinFET device involves performing an epitaxial growth process to form a layer of semiconducting material on a semiconducting substrate, wherein a first portion of the layer of semiconducting material will become a fin structure for the FinFET device and wherein a plurality of second portions of the layer of semiconducting material will become source/drain structures of the FinFET device, forming a gate insulation layer around at least a portion of the fin structure and forming a gate electrode above the gate insulation layer.

Abstract: One illustrative method disclosed herein involves forming an etch stop layer above a plurality of sacrificial gate structures, performing an angled ion implant process to implant an etch-inhibiting species into less than an entirety of the etch stop layer, and forming a layer of insulating material above the etch stop layer. The method further includes removing the sacrificial gate structures, forming replacement gate structures, forming a hard mask layer above the replacement gate structures and layer of insulating material, forming a patterned hard mask layer, performing another etching process through the patterned hard mask layer to define an opening in the layer of insulating material to expose a portion of the etch stop layer, performing another etching process on the exposed portion to define a contact opening therethrough that exposes a doped region and forming a conductive contact in the opening that is conductively coupled to the doped region.

Abstract: A device includes a plurality of trenches and fins defined in a substantially un-doped layer of semiconducting material, a gate insulation layer positioned on the fins and on the bottom of the trenches, a gate electrode and a device isolation structure. One method disclosed herein involves identifying a top width of each of a plurality of fins and a depth of a plurality of trenches to be formed in a substantially un-doped layer of semiconducting material, wherein, during operation, the device is adapted to operate in at least three distinguishable conditions depending upon a voltage applied to the device, performing at least one process operation to define the trenches and fins in the layer of semiconducting material, forming a gate insulation layer on the fins and on a bottom of the trenches and forming a gate electrode above the gate insulation layer.

Abstract: A method of forming a FinFET device involves performing an epitaxial growth process to form a layer of semiconducting material on a semiconducting substrate, wherein a first portion of the layer of semiconducting material will become a fin structure for the FinFET device and wherein a plurality of second portions of the layer of semiconducting material will become source/drain structures of the FinFET device, forming a gate insulation layer around at least a portion of the fin structure and forming a gate electrode above the gate insulation layer.

Abstract: A device includes a plurality of trenches and fins defined in a substantially un-doped layer of semiconducting material, a gate insulation layer positioned on the fins and on the bottom of the trenches, a gate electrode and a device isolation structure. One method disclosed herein involves identifying a top width of each of a plurality of fins and a depth of a plurality of trenches to be formed in a substantially un-doped layer of semiconducting material, wherein, during operation, the device is adapted to operate in at least three distinguishable conditions depending upon a voltage applied to the device, performing at least one process operation to define the trenches and fins in the layer of semiconducting material, forming a gate insulation layer on the fins and on a bottom of the trenches and forming a gate electrode above the gate insulation layer.

Abstract: One illustrative method disclosed herein involves forming gate structures for first and second spaced-apart transistors above a semiconducting substrate, forming an etch stop layer above the substrate and the gate structures, performing at least one angled ion implant process to implant at least one etch-inhibiting species into less than an entirety of the etch stop layer, after performing at least one angled ion implant process, forming a layer of insulating material above the etch stop layer, performing at least one first etching process to define an opening in the layer of insulating material and thereby expose a portion of the etch stop layer, performing at least one etching process on the exposed portion of the etch stop layer to define a contact opening therethrough that exposes a doped region formed in the substrate, and forming a conductive contact in the opening that is conductively coupled to the doped region.

Abstract: Methods of manufacturing semiconductor integrated circuits having FinFET structures with epitaxially formed source and drain regions are disclosed. For example, a method of fabricating an integrated circuit includes forming a plurality of silicon fin structures on a semiconductor substrate, forming disposable spacers on vertical sidewalls of the fin structures, and depositing a silicon oxide material over the fins and over the disposable spacers. The method further includes anisotropically etching at least one of the fin structures and the disposable spacers on the sidewalls of the at least one fin structure, thereby leaving a void in the silicon oxide material, and etching the silicon oxide material and the disposable spacers from at least one other of the fin structures, while leaving the at least one other fin structure un-etched. Still further, the method includes epitaxially growing a silicon material in the void and on the un-etched fin structure.

Abstract: Integrated circuits and methods for fabricating integrated circuits are provided. In an embodiment, a method for fabricating an integrated circuit includes forming a fin over a semiconductor substrate. The method further includes selectively epitaxially growing a silicon-containing material on the fin and providing the fin with a diamond-shaped cross-section and with an upper portion and a lower portion. The lower portion of the fin is covered with a masking layer. Further, a salicide layer is formed on the upper portion of the fin, and the masking layer prevents formation of the salicide layer on the lower portion of the fin.

Abstract: A logic switch intentionally utilizes GIDL current as its primary mechanism of operation. Voltages may be applied to a doped gate overlying and insulated from a pn junction. A first voltage initiates GIDL current, and the logic switch is bidirectionally conductive. A second voltage terminates GIDL current, but the logic switch is unidirectionally conductive. A third voltage renders the logic switch bidirectionally non-conductive. Circuits containing the logic switch are also described. These circuits include inverters, SRAM cells, voltage reference sources, and neuron logic switches. The logic switch is primarily implemented according to SOI protocols, but embodiments according to bulk protocols are described.

Abstract: One illustrative device disclosed herein includes a substantially un-doped layer of a semiconductor material positioned above a semiconducting substrate, a device isolation structure, at least a portion of which is positioned in a trench that extends through the substantially un-doped semiconductor material and into the substrate, a plurality of outer fins and at least one inner fin defined in the substantially un-doped layer of semiconductor material, wherein the at least one inner fin is positioned laterally between the plurality of outer fins and wherein a width of a bottom of each of the plurality of outer fins is greater than a width of a bottom of the inner fin, and a gate electrode positioned around at least a portion of the plurality of outer fins and the inner fin.

Abstract: Methods for removal of fins from a semiconductor structure are provided. A fin liner is applied to the fins. The fin liner is then removed from the fins that are to be removed. The fin liner is of a material that is selective compared to the semiconductor fins. Hence, the fins can be removed without significant damage to the fin liner. The subsets of fins that are to be removed are then removed, while the fin liner protects the adjacent fins that are to be kept.

Abstract: Using a damascene process, a cup-shaped MTJ device is formed in an opening within a dielectric layer. A passivation layer is formed on the top surfaces of the sidewalls of the cup-shaped MTJ device to enclose the top of the sidewalls, thereby reducing magnetic flux leakage. Accordingly, the MTJ device may be fabricated using the same equipment that are compatible with and commonly used in CMOS technologies/processes.

Abstract: One illustrative method disclosed herein involves forming an etch stop layer above a plurality of sacrificial gate structures, performing an angled ion implant process to implant an etch-inhibiting species into less than an entirety of the etch stop layer, and forming a layer of insulating material above the etch stop layer. The method further includes removing the sacrificial gate structures, forming replacement gate structures, forming a hard mask layer above the replacement gate structures and layer of insulating material, forming a patterned hard mask layer, performing another etching process through the patterned hard mask layer to define an opening in the layer of insulating material to expose a portion of the etch stop layer, performing another etching process on the exposed portion to define a contact opening therethrough that exposes a doped region and forming a conductive contact in the opening that is conductively coupled to the doped region.

Abstract: One illustrative method disclosed herein involves forming gate structures for first and second spaced-apart transistors above a semiconducting substrate, forming an etch stop layer above the substrate and the gate structures, performing at least one angled ion implant process to implant at least one etch-inhibiting species into less than an entirety of the etch stop layer, after performing at least one angled ion implant process, forming a layer of insulating material above the etch stop layer, performing at least one first etching process to define an opening in the layer of insulating material and thereby expose a portion of the etch stop layer, performing at least one etching process on the exposed portion of the etch stop layer to define a contact opening therethrough that exposes a doped region formed in the substrate, and forming a conductive contact in the opening that is conductively coupled to the doped region.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are various methods of forming FinFET semiconductor devices so as to tune the threshold voltage of such devices. In one example, the method includes forming a plurality of spaced-apart trenches in a semiconducting substrate to define at least one fin (or fins) for the device, prior to forming a gate structure above the fin (or fins), performing a first epitaxial growth process to grow a first semiconductor material on exposed portions of the fin (or fins) and forming the gate structure above the first semiconductor material on the fin (or fins).

Abstract: A semiconductor device is prepared by an annealing process to interconnect at least two components of the device by a conductor line surrounded by an insulator material. The annealing process results in formation of residual stresses within the conductor line and the insulator material. A notch is designed in the layout on a selective portion of the mask for patterning conductor line. The existence of a shape of notch on the selective portion generates extra stress components within the conductor line than if without the existence of the notch. The position of the notch is selected so that the extra stress components substantially counteract the residual stresses, thereby causing a net reduction in the residual stresses. The reduction in the residual stresses results in a corresponding mechanical stress migration and therefore improvement in the reliability of the device.

Abstract: A semiconductor device and a method of forming the same. The semiconductor device comprises a gate structure comprising a tunnel oxide over a substrate; a floating gate over the tunnel oxide; a dielectric over the floating gate; and a control gate over the dielectric. The semiconductor device further comprises: spacers along opposite edges of the gate structure; a first impurity region doped with a first type of dopant laterally spaced apart from a first edge of the gate structure; and a second impurity region doped with a second type of dopant, opposite from the first type, the drain being substantially under the drain spacer and substantially aligned with a second edge of the gate structure.

Abstract: A resistive random access memory utilizing gate induced drain leakage current as the read operation current and the write operation current and a method of operation the same, wherein the resistive random access memory including a plurality of arrayed memory cells, a plurality of bit-lines and a plurality word-lines, each memory cell including: a switching resistor having a first terminal and a second terminal, the first terminal of the switching resistor being connected to one bit-line; and a MOSFET being connected to the second terminal and having a gate, a source, a drain and a substrate, the gate being connected to one word-line, the read operation current and the write operation current of the memory cell being gate induced drain leakage current of the MOSFET. The RRAM array presented in this invention has superior scalability for resistors as well as transistors, which leads to a memory array with higher density.

Abstract: A semiconductor device is prepared by an annealing process to interconnect at least two components of the device by a conductor line surrounded by an insulator material. The annealing process results in formation of residual stresses within the conductor line and the insulator material. A notch is designed in the layout on a selective portion of the mask for patterning conductor line. The existence of a shape of notch on the selective portion generates extra stress components within the conductor line than if without the existence of the notch. The position of the notch is selected so that the extra stress components substantially counteract the residual stresses, thereby causing a net reduction in the residual stresses. The reduction in the residual stresses results in a corresponding mechanical stress migration and therefore improvement in the reliability of the device.

Abstract: Using a damascene process, a cup-shaped MTJ device is formed in an opening within a dielectric layer. A passivation layer is formed on the top surfaces of the sidewalls of the cup-shaped MTJ device to enclose the top of the sidewalls, thereby reducing magnetic flux leakage. Accordingly, the MTJ device may be fabricated using the same equipment that are compatible with and commonly used in CMOS technologies/processes.