Atomic-layer-deposited （ALD） Al2O3passivation dependent interface chemistry, band alignment and electrical properties of HfYO/Si gate stacks

In this work, the effects of atomic-layer-deposited(ALD) Al2O3 passivation layers with different thicknesses on the interface chemistry and electrical properties of sputtering-derived HfYO gate dielectrics on Si substrates have been investigated. The results of electrical measurements and X-ray photoelectron sepectroscopy(XPS) showed that 1-nm-thick Al2O3 passivation layer is optimized to obtain excellent electrical and interfacial properties for HfYO/Si gate stack. Then, the metal-oxide-semiconductor capacitors with HfYO/1-nm Al2O3/Si/Al gate stack were fabricated and annealed at different temperatures in forming gas(95% N2+5% H2). Capacitance-voltage(C-V) and current density-voltage(J-V) characteristics showed that the 250℃-annealed HYO high-k gate dielectric thin film demonstrated the lowest border trapped oxide charge density(-3.3 × 1010 cm-2), smallest gate-leakage current(2.45 × 10-6 A/cm2 at 2 V)compared with other samples. Moreover, the annealing temperature dependent leakage current conduction mechanism for Al/HfYO/Al2O3/Si/Al MOS capacitor has been investigated systematically. Detailed electrical measurements reveal that Poole-Frenkle emission is the main dominant emission in the region of low and medium electric fields while direct tunneling is dominant conduction mechanism at high electric fields.

Influence of annealing temperature on passivation performance of thermal atomic layer deposition Al_2O_3 films

Chemical and field-effect passivation of atomic layer deposition （ALD） Al2O3 films are investigated, mainly by corona charging measurement. The interface structure and material properties are characterized by transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）, respectively. Passivation performance is improved remarkably by annealing at temperatures of 450 ℃ and 500 ℃, while the improvement is quite weak at 600 ℃, which can be attributed to the poor quality of chemical passivation. An increase of fixed negative charge density in the films during annealing can be explained by the Al2O3/Si interface structural change. The Al–OH groups play an important role in chemical passivation, and the Al–OH concentration in an as-deposited film subsequently determines the passivation quality of that film when it is annealed, to a certain degree.

Surface Leakage Currents in SiN and Al_2O_3 Passivated AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors

Surface leakage currents of A1GaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors are investigated by utilizing a circular double-gate structure to eliminate the influence of mesa leakage current. Different mechanisms are found under various passivation conditions. The mechanism of the surface leakage current with AI2 03 passivation follows the two-dimensional variable range hopping model, while the mechanism of the surface leakage current with SiN passivation follows the Frenkel-Poole trap assisted emission. Two trap levels are found in the trap-assisted emission. One trap level has a barrier height of 0.22eV for the high electric field, and the other trap level has a barrier height of 0.12eV for the low electric field.