Patent ID: 6960516

Claim:
A method of fabricating a semiconductor device including a self-aligned silicide formation process, comprising the steps of: forming a device structure including a polysilicon gate electrode and a diffusion region on a silicon substrate; depositing a metal film on said silicon substrate so as to cover said polysilicon gate electrode and said diffusion region; forming a silicide layer by causing a reaction between a surface of said polysilicon gate electrode and said metal film and between a surface of said diffusion region and said metal film; and removing said metal film after said step of forming said silicide layer; wherein there is provided, before said deposition step of said metal film, the step of removing a native oxide film from a surface of said polysilicon gate electrode and a surface of said diffusion region, and wherein there is provided, after said step of removing said native oxide film, the step of forming a chemical oxide film on said surface of said polysilicon gate electrode and said surface of said diffusion region.