Method for fabricating a semiconductor device using lateral gettering

A semiconductor structure (20) includes a silicon layer (16) formed on an oxide layer (14). Gettering sinks (31, 32) are formed in the silicon layer (16). Lateral gettering is performed to effectively remove impurities from a first section (26) of the semiconductor layer (16). An insulated gate semiconductor device (40) is then formed in semiconductor layer (16), wherein a channel region (55) of the device (40) is formed in the first section (26) of the semiconductor layer (16). A gate dielectric layer (42) of the device (40) is formed over a portion of the first section (26) after the lateral gettering process, thereby enhancing the integrity of the gate dielectric layer (42).