Hot-electron-induced electron trapping in 0.13 μm nMOSFETs with ultrathin (EOT=1.6 nm) nitrided gate oxide

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 μm 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 ₃ N 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.