Abstract: An IC layout diagram generation system includes a processor and a storage medium including computer program code configured to place a cell in an IC layout diagram, route a second metal segment to the cell by positioning the second metal segment along a first plurality of tracks having a first pitch in a first direction, route a third metal segment to the second metal segment by positioning the third metal segment along a second plurality of tracks having a second pitch in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and route a fourth metal segment to the third metal segment by positioning the fourth metal segment along a third plurality of tracks having a third pitch in the first direction, the third pitch being smaller than the second pitch. An IC layout file is generated based on the cell and the second, third, and fourth metal segments.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes a semiconductor structure having a power distribution network including first and second conductive lines. A substrate includes a first surface that is in contact with the power distribution network. A plurality of backside vias are in the substrate and electrically coupled to the first conductive line. A via rail is on a second surface of the substrate that opposes the first surface. A first interlayer dielectric is on the via rail and on the substrate. A second interlayer dielectric is on the first interlayer dielectric. A third interlayer dielectric is on the second interlayer dielectric. First and top interconnect layers are in the second and third interlayer dielectrics, respectively. Deep vias are in the third interlayer dielectric and electrically coupled to the via rail. The deep vias are also connected to the first and top interconnect layers. A power supply in/out layer is on the third interlayer dielectric and in contact with the top interconnect layer.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing an integrated circuit includes generating a first layout design based on design criteria, performing a color mapping between the first layout design and a standard cell layout design thereby generating a via color layout design, and manufacturing the integrated circuit based on the via color layout design. The first layout design has a first set of vias divided into sub-sets of vias based on a corresponding color indicating that vias of the sub-set of vias with a same color, and vias of the sub-set of vias with a different color. The standard cell layout design has a second set of vias arranged in standard cells. The via color layout design has a third set of vias including a portion of the second set of vias and corresponding locations, and color of the corresponding sub-set of vias.

Abstract: A structure includes first, second, third, and fourth conductive segments, and a gate. The first and second conductive segments are in a first conductive layer and configured as first and second terminals of a first transistor of a first type. The third and fourth conductive segments are in a second conductive layer stacked over the first conductive layer and configured as first and second terminals of a second transistor of a second type. The first gate is arranged, in a first direction, between the first and third conductive segments and the second and fourth conductive segments. The gate is configured as a control terminal of the first transistor and a control terminal of the second transistor, the first conductive segment is offset from the third conductive segment along the first direction, and the second conductive segment is offset from the fourth conductive segment along the first direction.

Abstract: A semiconductor device, including a first metal strip extending in a first direction on a first plane; a second metal strip extending in the first direction on a second plane over the first metal strip; a third metal strip immediate adjacent to the second metal strip and extending in the first direction on the second plane; and a fourth metal strip immediate adjacent to the third metal strip and extending in the first direction on the second plane; wherein the first metal strip and the second metal strip are directed to a first voltage source; wherein a distance between the second metal strip and the third metal strip is greater than a distance between the third metal strip and the fourth metal strip.

Abstract: Exemplary embodiments for an exemplary dual transmission gate and various exemplary integrated circuit layouts for the exemplary dual transmission gate are disclosed. These exemplary integrated circuit layouts represent double-height, also referred to as double rule, integrated circuit layouts. These double rule integrated circuit layouts include a first group of rows from among multiple rows of an electronic device design real estate and a second group of rows from among the multiple rows of the electronic device design real estate to accommodate a first metal layer of a semiconductor stack. The first group of rows can include a first pair of complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect (CMOS) transistors, such as a first p-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect (PMOS) transistor and a first n-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect (NMOS) transistor, and the second group of rows can include a second pair of CMOS transistors, such as a second PMOS transistor and a second NMOS transistor.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device including: arranging a first and a second gate strip separating in a first distance, wherein each of the first and the second gate strip is a gate terminal of a transistor; depositing a first contact via on the first gate strip; forming a first conductive strip on the first contact via, wherein the first conductive strip and the first gate strip are crisscrossed from top view; arranging a second and a third conductive strip, above the first conductive strip, separating in a second distance, wherein each of the second and the third conductive strip is free from connecting to the first conductive strip, the first and the second conductive strip are crisscrossed from top view. The first distance is twice as the second distance. A length of the first conductive strip is smaller than two and a half times as the first distance.

Abstract: An integrated circuit includes a first and a second active region, a first contact, a second contact and a first insulating layer. The first active region is in a substrate, extends in a first direction, and is located on a first level. The second active region is in the substrate, extends in the first direction, is located on the first level, and is separated from the first active region in a second direction. The first contact is coupled to the first and the second active region, extends in the second direction, is located on a second level, and overlaps the first and the second active region. The second contact extends in the second direction, overlaps the first contact, and is located on a third level. The first insulating layer extends in the second direction, and is between the second contact and the first contact.

Abstract: A method is disclosed, including the following operations: arranging a first gate structure extending continuously above a first active region and a second active region of a substrate; arranging a first separation spacer disposed on the first gate structure to isolate an electronic signal transmitted through a first gate via and a second gate via that are disposed on the first gate structure, in which the first gate via and the second gate via are arranged above the first active region and the second active region respectively; and arranging a first local interconnect between the first active region and the second active region, in which the first local interconnect is electrically coupled to a first contact disposed on the first active region and a second contact disposed on the second active region.

Abstract: A method of generating an integrated circuit (IC) layout diagram includes arranging first conductive feature layout patterns in a cell region. The first conductive feature layout patterns extend in a first direction, and the cell region has opposite first and second cell boundaries extending in a second direction. Second conductive feature layout patterns are arranged in the cell region and extending in the first direction. The first and second conductive feature layout patterns are alternately arranged. First cut feature layout patterns are arranged on the first cell boundary of the cell region and on ends of the first conductive feature layout patterns. One of the first cut feature layout patterns is offset from another one of the first cut feature layout patterns in the first direction. The IC layout diagram including the first and second conductive feature layout patterns and the first cut feature layout patterns is generated.

Abstract: Examples of an integrated circuit a having an advanced two-dimensional (2D) metal connection with metal cut and methods of fabricating the same are provided. An example method for fabricating a conductive interconnection layer of an integrated circuit may include: patterning a conductive connector portion on the conductive interconnection layer of the integrated circuit using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, wherein the conductive connector portion is patterned to extend across multiple semiconductor structures in a different layer of the integrated circuit; and cutting the conductive connector portion into a plurality of conductive connector sections, wherein the conductive connector portion is cut by removing conductive material from the metal connector portion at one or more locations between the semiconductor structures.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes various non-planar semiconductor devices, such as fin field-effect transistors (finFETs) to provide an example, having one or more metal rail conductors and various methods for fabricating these non-planar semiconductor devices. In some situations, the one or more metal rail conductors can be electrically connected to gate, source, and/or drain regions of these various non-planar semiconductor devices. In these situations, the one or more metal rail conductors can be utilized to electrically connect the gate, the source, and/or the drain regions of various non-planar semiconductor devices to other gate, source, and/or drain regions of various non-planar semiconductor devices and/or other semiconductor devices. However, in other situations, the one or more metal rail conductors can be isolated from the gate, the source, and/or the drain regions these various non-planar semiconductor devices.

Abstract: Methods and devices are described herein for random cut patterning. A first metal line and a second metal line are formed within a cell of a substrate and extend in a vertical direction. A third metal line and a fourth metal line are formed within the cell and are perpendicular to the first metal line and the second metal line, respectively. A first circular region at one end of the first metal line is formed using a first patterning technique and a second circular region at one end of the second metal line is formed using a second patterning technique. The first circular region is laterally extended using a second patterning technique to form the third metal line and the second circular region is laterally extended using the second patterning technique to form the fourth metal line.

Abstract: A semiconductor device includes: a substrate; an ion-implanted silicon layer disposed in the substrate; a first insulator layer disposed over the ion-implanted silicon layer; an active device disposed over the first insulator layer; and a conductive via configured to penetrate the first insulator layer for coupling the ion-implanted silicon layer and the active device.

Abstract: An integrated circuit includes an active zone extending in a first direction, and a spacer extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The spacer protrudes into a substrate and divides the active zone into a first part and a second part. The integrated circuit includes a first conductive segment and a second conductive segment each extending in the second direction and in a middle layer between the substrate and a metal layer. The first conductive segment forms conductive contact with an active region of a first transistor in the first part of the active zone, and the second conductive segment forms conductive contact with an active region of the second transistor in the second part of the active zone. The spacer joins the first conductive segment and the second conductive segment while electrically isolating the first conductive segment from the second conductive segment.

Abstract: A method of designing a layout includes generating first routing tracks assigned to a first color group, generating second routing tracks assigned to a second color group, wherein a first routing track of the first routing tracks is between adjacent second routing tracks of the second routing tracks, and specifying a color stitching region connecting a selected first routing track of the first routing tracks with a selected second routing track of the second routing tracks of the layout, wherein the color stitching region represents a conductive region that connects a first conductive element represented by the selected first routing track with a second conductive element represented by the selected second routing track through an exposed portion of the selected first routing track, and wherein the exposed portion is at a removed portion of a sidewall structure surrounding the selected first routing track.

Abstract: A semiconductor device includes gate strips, first metal strips and second metal strips. The first metal strips are formed above the gate strips. The first metal strips are co-planar, and each first metal strip and one of the gate strips are crisscrossed. The second metal strips are formed above the first metal strips. The second metal strips are co-planar, and each second metal strip and one of the first metal strips are crisscrossed. One first metal strip connects to one gate strip crossing underneath by a first contact via without connecting to one second metal strip crossing over. A length between two adjacent gate strips is twice as a length between two adjacent second metal strips, and a length of said one first metal strips is smaller than two and a half times as the length between two adjacent gate strips.

Abstract: Exemplary embodiments for an exemplary dual transmission gate and various exemplary integrated circuit layouts for the exemplary dual transmission gate are disclosed. These exemplary integrated circuit layouts represent double-height, also referred to as double rule, integrated circuit layouts. These double rule integrated circuit layouts include a first group of rows from among multiple rows of an electronic device design real estate and a second group of rows from among the multiple rows of the electronic device design real estate to accommodate a first metal layer of a semiconductor stack. The first group of rows can include a first pair of complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect (CMOS) transistors, such as a first p-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect (PMOS) transistor and a first n-type metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect (NMOS) transistor, and the second group of rows can include a second pair of CMOS transistors, such as a second PMOS transistor and a second NMOS transistor.

Abstract: An IC structure includes a first plurality of metal segments in a first metal layer, a second plurality of metal segments in a second metal layer overlying the first metal layer, and a third plurality of metal segments in a third metal layer overlying the second metal layer. The metal segments of the first and third pluralities of metal segments extend in a first direction, and the metal segments of the second plurality of metal segments extend in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. A pitch of the third plurality of metal segments is smaller than a pitch of the second plurality of metal segments.

Abstract: A method for calculating cell edge leakage in a semiconductor device comprising performing a device leakage simulation to obtain leakage information for different cell edge conditions and providing attributes associated with cell edges in the semiconductor device. The method further comprises performing an analysis to identify cell abutment cases present in the semiconductor device and calculating the leakage of the semiconductor device based at least in part on probabilities associated with the cell abutment cases and the simulated leakage values obtained from the device leakage simulation.