Patent ID: 8124512

Claim:
A method of forming an integrated circuit device, comprising: forming a first electrically conductive layer comprising polysilicon on a substrate; forming a photoresist pattern covering a portion of the first electrically conductive layer; implanting impurities into a portion of an upper surface of the first electrically conductive layer that is not covered by the photoresist pattern to thereby damage the portion of the upper surface of the first electrically conductive layer; selectively removing the damaged portion of the upper surface of the first electrically conductive layer to thereby define a first portion of the first electrically conductive layer having a first thickness and a second portion of the first electrically conductive layer having a second thickness greater than the first thickness; forming a second electrically conductive layer having a nonuniform thickness on the first and second portions of the first electrically conductive layer; forming a hard mask layer on the second electrically conductive layer; patterning the hard mask layer; selectively etching a first portion of the second electrically conductive layer and the first portion of the first electrically conductive layer in sequence to define a first electrically conductive gate electrode extending opposite a first portion of the substrate, using the patterned hard mask layer as an etching mask; and selectively etching a second portion of the second electrically conductive layer and the second portion of the first electrically conductive layer in sequence to define a second electrically conductive gate electrode extending opposite a second portion of the substrate, said first electrically conductive gate electrode having an equivalent thickness to the second electrically conductive gate electrode; wherein a first ratio of a thickness of the first portion of the second electrically conductive layer relative to a thickness of the first portion of the first electrically conductive layer in the first electrically conductive gate electrode is greater than a second ratio of a thickness of the second portion of the second electrically conductive layer relative to a thickness of the second portion of the first electrically conductive layer in the second electrically conductive gate electrode; wherein a conductivity of the second electrically conductive layer is greater than a conductivity of the first electrically conductive layer; wherein the first electrically conductive gate electrode is a gate electrode of a memory cell transistor; and wherein the second electrically conductive gate electrode is a gate electrode of a transistor within a peripheral circuit region of the substrate extending adjacent a memory cell region of the substrate that comprises the memory cell transistor.