Observation of charge trapping site within high-k thin films by scanning capacitance microscopy

Yuichi Naitou, Atsushi Ando, Hisato Ogiso, Satoshi Kamiyama, Yasuo Nara, Kiyoshi Yasutake and Heiji Watanabe

Abstract: The gate dielectrics separate gate electrode and channel, and it is one of the key components of the metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs). The microscopic properties of gate dielectrics considerably affect the device performance of the nano-meter scaled MOSFETs. Nowadays, high permittivity (high-k) metal oxides are expected to replace conventional silicon dioxides (SiO₂) as the gate dielectrics for the next-generation MOSFETs. In this paper, we introduce the results of the observation of the charge distributions within high-k films through scanning capacitance microscopy (SCM) measurements.

Key words: scanning probe microscopy, scanning capacitance microscopy, meta-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor, gate oxide, high-k thin film