ISSN:
1089-7550
Source:
AIP Digital Archive
Topics:
Physics
Notes:
New experimental results are presented which provide evidence for hydrogen passivation and depassivation of plasma-charging-induced defects in gate oxides and at oxide/silicon interfaces. The devices used in this study were 0.5 μm n-channel metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors fabricated on 200 mm boron-doped silicon substrates. The processing included Cl2/HBr-based chemistries for the polycrystalline silicon gate definition etch, and CHF3/CF4-based chemistries for the contact etch. Plasma-charging defects resulting from the processing are shown to have the following properties: (i) plasma-induced charging defects are latent (electrically inactive) directly after our processing and before postmetallization annealing (PMA); (ii) these defects continue to be latent after N2 and Ar anneals done at temperatures T in the range 200 °C≤T≤400 °C; (iii) these defects are also latent after our standard PMA done in forming gas at 400 °C; (iv) these defects are electrically activated by room-temperature Fowler–Nordheim stress, and (v) equivalently these defects are electrically activated by annealing below 400 °C in hydrogen-rich ambients. We show hydrogen passivation/depassivation is responsible for this behavior. This passivation/depassivation has been previously suggested to occur for defects at SiO2/Si interface; here it is also proposed to describe defect–hydrogen interactions in the bulk gate oxide for defects caused by plasma-charging damage. © 1996 American Institute of Physics.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.360860
