Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Wan-Hsien Lin

Chi On Chui

Ting-Gang Chen

Tai-Chun Huang

Chieh-Ping Wang

Chin-Wei Lin

Methods for selectively depositing a metal layer over a gate structure and semiconductor devices formed by the same are disclosed. In an embodiment, a semiconductor device includes a channel region over a semiconductor substrate; a gate structure over the channel region; a gate spacer adjacent the gate structure; a first dielectric layer adjacent the gate spacer; a barrier layer contacting a top surface of the gate spacer and a side surface of the first dielectric layer, the barrier layer including a nitride; and a metal layer over the gate structure adjacent the barrier layer, the metal layer having a first width equal to a second width of the gate structure.

Semiconductor device and method

A gate stack can be etched to form a trench extending through the gate stack, the trench removing a portion of the gate stack to separate the gate stack into a first gate stack portion and a second gate stack portion. A dielectric material is deposited in the trench to form a dielectric region, the dielectric region having an air gap in the dielectric material. The air gap may extend upward from beneath the gate stack to an area interposed between the end of the first gate stack portion and the end of the second gate stack portion. Contacts to the first gate stack portion and contacts to the second gate stack portion may be formed which are electrically isolated from each other by the dielectric material and air gap formed therein.

Growing community of inventors

Hsinchu, Taiwan

Wan-Hsien Lin