Patent ID: 7368364

Claim:
A method for manufacturing an element isolation structural section, comprising the steps of: setting to a substrate having an upper surface and a lower surface opposite to the upper surface, a plurality of element forming regions and an element isolation structural section forming region which separates the plurality of element forming regions from one another; forming a first thermal oxide film over the upper surface of the substrate; forming a film changed in etching rate by heat treatment over the first thermal oxide film; forming a silicon nitride film over the film changed in etching rate by the heat treatment; removing the silicon nitride film, the film changed in etching rate by the heat treatment and the first thermal oxide film in the element isolation structural section forming region and forming a trench extending from the upper surface of the substrate corresponding to the element isolation structural section forming region to within the substrate; forming a trench oxide film which covers within the trench; forming an embedded oxide film which buries within the trench covered with the trench oxide film and covers exposed surfaces of the silicon nitride film, the film changed in etching rate by the heat treatment and the first thermal oxide film; removing the embedded oxide film until the silicon nitride film is exposed and the height of the embedded oxide film is aligned with approximately the same height as that of the silicon nitride film within the element isolation structural section forming region; removing the embedded oxide film set approximately identical in height to the silicon nitride film as a height lower than an upper surface of the silicon nitride film; removing the silicon nitride film; removing the film changed in etching rate by the heat treatment and the first thermal oxide film; forming a second thermal oxide film over an exposed surface of the substrate from which the film changed in etching rate by the heat treatment and the first thermal oxide film are removed; and removing the second thermal oxide film and setting the embedded oxide film to approximately the same height as that of an exposed surface of the substrate from which the second thermal oxide film is removed.