Formation of thin gate oxides on SiGe with atomic oxygen

Atomic oxygen from a remote O-2 plasma has been used to form thin oxide layers on Si, SiGe0.025 and SiGe0.025 that is capped with 12.5 Angstrom of Si. The nature and thicknesses of the oxide were determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and the interfacial trap densities were continuously monitored during processing with a remote RF-probe. It is found that all interfaces benefit from exposure to atomic hydrogen after the oxidation and that after such treatment the interfacial trap density is not significantly different on the pure Si, SiGe0.025 and Si-capped SiGe0.025 substrates. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.