Reliability Characterization of Digital Microcircuits - Investigation of an In-Process Oxide Reliability Screening Method.

摘要

This report covers the work performed, using a sacrificial-metal-pattern technique, to demonstrate a 100% in-process screen for oxide defects in high-density CMOS microcircuits, and to evaluate the effectiveness and side effects of the added processing steps on yield and reliability. Using large-area polysilicon capacitors and 101-stage metal-1 delay-lines in GEM WAT keys as test vehicles, experiments with split lot reliability screening and life test, first with 240 A and again with 150 A gate oxide, have demonstrated practically complete elimination of the defective populations for test capacitors and about 50% reduction in circuit functionality failures for delay-line circuits. This is accomplished with little or no penalty in metal-polysilicon contact resistance, or in delay-line circuit yield. The technique is found to be promising and should be further investigated with more complex circuits with double-level metals.... Oxide reliability, In-process screening effects, Voltage ramp oxide breakdown, Time-dependent dielectric breakdown, CMOS, CMOS-on-insulator, Integrated Circuits.