Patent ID: 8436427

Claim:
A semiconductor device comprising: a substrate comprising a p-type device region and an n-type device region; at least one nFET present in the n-type device region comprising a first gate structure including a first Hf-containing gate dielectric having a first nitrided hafnium upper surface present on the substrate in the n-type device region, and a first gate conductor directly on the first nitride hafnium upper surface of the first Hf-containing gate dielectric, wherein the first nitrided hafnium upper surface is directly on the first Hf-containing gate dielectric; and at least one pFET present in the p-type device region comprising a second gate structure including a second Hf-containing gate dielectric having an upper surface substantially free of nitride present on the substrate in the p-type device region, a second gate conductor present directly on the second Hf-containing gate dielectric having the upper surface substantially free of nitride, wherein an upper surface of the second gate conductor in the second gate structure of the at least one pFET is a second nitrided upper surface.