Fundamental Mechanisms for Reduction of Leakage Current of Silicon Oxide and Oxynitride through RTP-Induced Phonon-Energy Coupling

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi Chen ◽  
Jun Guo ◽  
Pangleen Ong
Keyword(s):  
Leakage Current ◽  
Silicon Oxide ◽  
Energy Coupling ◽  
Phonon Energy

Enhanced Phonon-Energy Coupling: Dramatic Reduction of Leakage Current of Silicon Oxide

2006 ◽  
Vol 917 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhi Chen ◽  
Jun Guo ◽  
Chandan B Samantaray
Keyword(s):  
Effective Mass ◽  
Leakage Current ◽  
Thermal Processing ◽  
Silicon Oxide ◽  
Tunneling Current ◽  
Energy Coupling ◽  
Phonon Energy ◽  
Gate Leakage Current ◽  
Ultrathin Oxides ◽  
Direct Tunneling Current

AbstractWe study in detail a newly discovered effect, phonon-energy-coupling enhancement (PECE) effect, produced by rapid thermal processing (RTP). It includes two aspects: (1) Strengthening Si-D bonds and Si-O bonds and (2) Change of energy band structure and effective mass due to thermal shock. It is shown that not only Si-D bonds but also Si-O bonds have been strengthened dramatically, leading to enhancement of robustness of the oxide structure and the oxide/Si interface. For thick oxides (>3 nm), the gate leakage current has been reduced by two orders of magnitude and the breakdown voltage has been improved by ~30% due to phonon-energy coupling. For ultrathin oxides (2.2 nm), the direct tunneling current has been reduced by five-orders of magnitude, equivalent to that of HfO2, probably due to the increased effective mass and barrier height.

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