Development of a conductive atomic force microscope with a logarithmic current-to-voltage converter for the study of metal oxide semiconductor gate dielectrics reliability

L. Aguilera, M. Lanza, A. Bayerl, M. Porti, M. Nafria, X. Aymerich

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

A new configuration of conductive atomic force microscope (CAFM) is presented, which is based in a conventional AFM with a logarithmic current-to-voltage (log I-V) amplifier. While a standard CAFM allows to measure a current dynamic range of typically three orders of magnitude (0.1-100 pA), with the new setup it is possible to measure up to nine orders of magnitude. The extended current range allows to evaluate the reliability of gate dielectrics in a single electrical test, overcoming the limitations of standard CAFM configurations. The setup has been tested by analyzing breakdown (BD) spots induced in Si O2 and high- k layers. For current measurements, the results show that I-V characteristics and current images (measured at a constant voltage) can be easily obtained in a wide dynamic range, which can reveal new details of the BD mechanisms. In particular, the setup was used to investigate the area electrically affected by the breakdown event in Si O2 and Hf O2 Si O2 stacks. © 2009 American Vacuum Society.
Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)360-363
Number of pages4
JournalJournal of Vacuum Science and Technology B: Microelectronics and Nanometer Structures
Volume27
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 17 2009
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • Condensed Matter Physics

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