HOT-CARRIER-INDUCED DEGRADATION OF GATE DIELECTRICS GROWN IN NITROUS-OXIDE UNDER ACCELERATED AGING

Gate oxides grown with partial and complete oxidation in N2O were studied in terms of hot-carrier stressing. The dc lifetime for 10% degradation in g(m) had a 15X improvement over control oxides not grown in a N2O atmosphere. Further improvement in g(m) degradation was observed in oxides that received partial oxidation as compared with control oxides. This observed improvement is due to the incorporation of nitrogen that reduces strained Si-O bonds at the Si/SiO2 interface leading to lower interface state generation (ISG). Improvements were also observed in I(g)-V(g) characteristics indicating a reduction of trap sites both at the Si/SiO2 interface and in the bulk oxide. Improved gate-induced drain leakage (GIDL) characteristics as a function of hot-carrier stressing for partial N2O oxides were observed over control oxides. However, severe drain leakage that masked GIDL was observed on pure N2O oxides and is a subject for further study.