ANODIC GROWTH, DIELECTRIC BREAKDOWN AND CARRIER TRANSPORT IN AMORPHOUS SIO2 FILMS

Dielectric breakdown has been studied in anodically grown SiO2 and compared with the growth conditions. It is found that avalanche multiplication of electrons and ionic conductivity are closely related. This supports the impact ionization theory of anodization recently published[1]. An improved theory is given which supplies equations for efficiency of anodization, growth at constant current, and current decay at constant voltage in excellent agreement with experimental results. The effective mass ratio of electrons to ions, the mean free time of the electrons, the mean time between ionizing collisions and the electron drift velocity are estimated from experimental data. © 1969.