Hot-Electron-Induced Electron Trapping in 0.13 mu m nMOSFETs with Ultrathin (EOT=1.3 nm) Nitrided Gate Oxide

摘要

The device degradation caused by the hot-electron-induced electron trapping in the ultrathin (equivalent oxide thickness = 1.6 nm) nitrided gate oxide for the 0.13 mu m n-metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (n-MOSFETs) has been investigated. We have found that the nitrogen, incorporated in the gate dielectrics by a variety of popular techniques including Si_3N_4/SiO_2 (N/O) stack, NO annealing, and plasma nitridation, results in enhanced hot-electron-induced device degradations as compared to the conventional gate oxide counterpart. The enhanced hot-electron degradations are attributed to the electron trap generation in the ultrathin gate dielectric rather than the interface state generation as a result of nitrogen incorporation.