Reduced silicon thickness of N-channel transistors in SOI CMOS devices

1. A method, comprising:

adjusting a first thickness of a first portion of a semiconductor layer, said semiconductor layer being formed on a buried insulating layer, said first portion representing an active region of an N-channel transistor;

adjusting a second thickness of a second portion of said semiconductor layer, said second portion representing an active region of a P-channel transistor, said first thickness being less than said second thickness;

forming a first gate electrode structure above said active region of said N-channel transistor;

forming a second gate electrode structure above said active region of said P-channel transistor, wherein said first and second gate electrode structures each comprise a respective, effective height that is approximately equal; and

forming drain and source regions in said active regions of said N-channel and P-channel transistors.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting said first thickness and said second thickness comprises forming a mask so as to expose said first portion and cover said second portion and reducing an initial thickness of said first portion of the semiconductor layer by using said mask.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising introducing a well dopant species into said active region of said N-channel transistor by using said mask as an implantation mask.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein said well dopant species is introduced after reducing said initial thickness of said first portion.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting said first thickness and said second thickness comprises forming a mask so as to cover said first portion and expose said second portion and selectively forming a semiconductor material above said active region of said P-channel transistor.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising introducing a well dopant species into said active region of said P-channel transistor by using said mask as an implantation mask.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming said first and second gate electrode structures comprises forming a gate dielectric material, forming at least one electrode material on said gate dielectric material and patterning said at least one electrode material so as to form said first and second gate electrode structures, wherein a thickness of said at least one electrode material is substantially equal in said first and second gate electrode structures.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming said first and second gate electrode structures comprises forming a gate dielectric material, forming at least one electrode material on said gate dielectric material, performing a planarization process so as to form a planarized surface and patterning said at least one electrode material on the basis of said planarized surface.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein patterning said at least one electrode material comprises forming a gate electrode mask above said active region of said N-channel transistor and said active region of said P-channel transistor and performing an etch process so as to concurrently pattern said at least one electrode material of said first and second gate electrode structures.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein patterning said at least one electrode material comprises forming a first gate electrode mask above one of said active region of said N-channel transistor and said active region of said P-channel transistor while masking said at least one electrode material above the other one of said active region of said N-channel transistor and said P-channel transistor, and patterning said at least one electrode material on the basis of said first gate electrode mask.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein forming drain and source regions of said N-channel transistor comprises implanting an N-type dopant species so as to extend to said buried insulating layer.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein forming drain and source regions of said P-channel transistor comprises forming cavities in said second active region laterally offset from said second gate electrode structure, implanting a P-type dopant species so as to extend to said buried insulating layer and filling said cavities with a semiconductor material.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein said semiconductor material comprises a strain-inducing semiconductor alloy.

14. A method of forming an SOI device, comprising:

reducing a thickness of a first portion of a semiconductor layer that is formed on a buried insulating layer while maintaining an initial thickness of a second portion of said semiconductor layer, said first portion representing an active region of an N-channel transistor and said second portion representing an active region of a P-channel transistor; and

forming a first gate electrode structure on said first portion having said reduced thickness and a second gate electrode structure on said second portion having said initial thickness, wherein said first and second gate electrode structures each comprise a respective, effective height that is approximately equal.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein reducing a thickness of said first portion comprises forming a mask so as to cover said second portion and expose said first portion and performing an etch process using said mask as an etch mask.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising introducing a well dopant species into said first portion by using said mask as an implantation mask.

17. The method of claim 14 , wherein forming said first and second gate electrode structures comprises forming a gate dielectric material on said first and second portions, forming an electrode material above said gate dielectric material, performing a planarization process so as to provide a planarized surface and patterning said electrode material on the basis of said planarized surface.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein patterning said electrode material comprises performing a first masking and patterning sequence to form one of said first and second gate electrode structures and performing a second masking and patterning sequence to form the other one of said first and second gate electrode structures.

19. The method of claim 17 , further comprising forming drain and source regions of said N-channel transistor in said first portion by implanting an N-type dopant species so as to extend to said buried insulating layer.

20. The method of claim 19 , further comprising forming drain and source regions of said P-channel transistor by forming cavities in said second portion laterally offset from said second gate electrode structure, introducing a P-type dopant species so as to extend to said buried insulating layer and forming a semiconductor material in said cavities.

21. The method of claim 20 , wherein said semiconductor material comprises a strain-inducing semiconductor alloy.

22. A semiconductor device, comprising:

an N-channel transistor formed in and on a first active region having a first thickness, said N-channel transistor comprising a first gate electrode structure formed on said first active region; and

a P-channel transistor formed in and on a second active region having a second thickness that is greater than said first thickness, said P-channel transistor comprising a second gate electrode structure formed on said second active region, said first and second active regions formed on a buried insulating material, wherein said first and second gate electrode structures each comprise a respective, effective height that is approximately equal.

23. The semiconductor device of claim 22 , wherein a thickness of an electrode material of said first gate electrode structure is greater than a thickness of an electrode material of said second gate electrode structure.

24. The semiconductor device of claim 22 , wherein a length of said first and second gate electrodes is approximately 50 nm or less.

25. The semiconductor device of claim 24 , wherein said N-channel transistor further comprises drain and source regions, at least one of which extends to said buried insulating material with an N-type dopant concentration that is approximately 10 21 atoms per cm 3 or higher.