Electrical conduction and dielectric breakdown in aluminum oxideinsulators on silicon

Leakage currents and dielectric breakdown were studied in MIS capacitors of metal-aluminum oxide-silicon. The aluminum oxide was produced by thermally oxidizing AlN at 800-1160°C under dry O₂ conditions. The AlN films were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering on p-type Si (100) substrates. Thermal oxidation produced Al ₂O₃ with a thickness and structure that depended on the process time and temperature. The MIS capacitors exhibited the charge regimes of accumulation, depletion, and inversion on the Si semiconductor surface. The best electrical properties were obtained when all of the AlN was fully oxidized to Al₂O₃ with no residual AlN. The MIS flatband voltage was near 0 V, the net oxide trapped charge density, Q_0x, was less than 10¹¹ cm ^-2, and the interface trap density, D_it, was less than 10¹¹ cm^-2 eV^-1, At an oxide electric field of 0.3 MV/cm, the leakage current density was less than 10^-7 A cm^-2, with a resistivity greater than 10 ¹² Ω-cm. The critical field for dielectric breakdown ranged from 4 to 5 MV/cm. The temperature dependence of the current versus electric field indicated that the conduction mechanism was Frenkel-Poole emission, which has the property that higher temperatures reduce the current. This may be important for the reliability of circuits operating under extreme conditions. The dielectric constant ranged from 3 to 9. The excellent electronic quality of aluminum oxide may be attractive for field effect transistor applications     

High-Q LaAlO3 dielectric resonator shielded byYBCO-films

We have investigated a dielectric resonator consisting of a single crystalline LaAlO₃-cylinder shielded by a cylindrically shaped copper cavity with endplates made from epitaxial films of YBa₂Cu₃O₇ or niobium. For YBa₂ Cu₃O₇ films unloaded quality factors Q₀ of 4.5·10⁵ at 10 K and 1.3·10⁵ at 77 K were achieved at 11.6 GHz using a compact shielding cavity with a diameter of 15 mm and a height of 3.8 mm. The loss contributions of the dielectric resonator, the normal conducting cylinder wall, and the superconducting endplates, with one of them being separated by a small distance h from the dielectric cylinder, were calculated by modeling the electromagnetic fields of the TE_0νμ-modes. The dielectric loss tangent of the LaAlO ₃-cylinders was found to be 10^-6 at 4.3 K and f=11.6 GHz and to increase slightly with temperature. Moreover, the calculations indicate the tunability of the resonance frequency by changing h over a range of 1 GHz without significant degradation of Q ₀. These resonators are considered to be useful devices for stable oscillators and narrowband filters     

Spectral gain hole-burning at 1.53 μm in erbium-doped fiberamplifiers

Spectral gain hole-burning at λ₀=1.53 μm was observed in an erbium-doped fiber amplifier at temperatures between 4.2 and 77 K. The hole width was found to broaden with temperature for T ⩾20 K according to a T^1.73 law. From the data, the room-temperature homogeneous linewidth associated with the 1.531-μm transition in the ⁴I_13/2-⁴I_15/2 laser system was determined to be Δλ_h=11.5 nm for aluminosilicate fibers     

Modeling the microwave properties of superconductors

In this paper a macroscopic phenomenological model for the microwave properties of superconductors is presented. The model is based on the idea that there are two kinds of current carriers, and instead of the first London's equation a new equation is derived. This model can be applied to both low- and high-temperature superconductors. Using this model, an expression for the microwave surface resistance is derived and the surface resistance versus frequency is calculated. The results show that the relation between resistance and frequency is not R₃~ω² as indicated by both BCS theory and London model, but R_s~ω^a, where a is between 1 and 2 (e.g. a=1.35) for thin film high-T_c superconductors YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ. The temperature dependence of R_s is simulated using the given model. These relations and the values of the surface resistance agree well with experimental results. A residual resistance may be interpreted from this model     

Effect of substrate temperature on the properties of deep ultraviolet transparent conductive ITO/Ga2O3 films

正ITO/Ga_2O_3 bi-layer films were deposited on quartz glass substrates by magnetron sputtering.The effect of substrate temperature on the structure,surface morphology,optical and electrical properties of ITO/Ga_2O_3 films was investigated by an X-ray diffractometer,a scanning electron microscope,a double beam spectrophotometer and the Hall system,respectively.The structural characteristics showed a dependence on substrate temperature. The resistivity of the films varied from 6.71×10~(-3) to 1.91×10~3Ω·cm as the substrate temperature increased from 100 to 350℃.ITO(22 nm)/Ga_2O_3(50 nm) films deposited at 300℃exhibited a low sheet resistance of 373.3Ω/□and high deep ultraviolet transmittance of 78.97%at the wavelength of 300 nm.     

Mechanism for the thermal dependence of the Cr to Nd energytransfer in garnets

The temperature dependence of the Cr-Nd energy transfer is found to be due to the thermal variation of the radiative decay probability of Cr. The validity of this conjecture is checked in the Gd₃Sc ₂Ga₃O₁₂ and CaMg₂Y₂ Ge₃O₁₂ crystals. It is also found that above 200 K, the nonradiative energy transfer rate from Cr to Nd is greater in Gd₃Sc₂Ga₃O₁₂ than in CaMg ₂Y₂Ge₃O₁₂     

Possibility ofNd1.9Ba1.1Cu3O7+δ andPr1.14Ba1.86Cu3O7-δsingle crystals for insulator in high-speed superconductingcircuits

Dielectric properties of both Nd_1.9Ba_1.1Cu ₃O_7+δ (NBCO-213) and Pr_1.14Ba_1.86Cu₃O_7-δ (Pr-rich PBCO) single crystals have been examined at low temperature. These materials have good lattice matching to high-T_c superconductors (HTS), but they are conductive at room temperature. Below 80 K, they are insulators with low dielectric constants, ε _τ below 25, and low dielectric loss tan δ below 0.1 at 100 kHz. The value of ε_τ is suitable for insulators in integrated circuits using strip line widths of 10 μm order, providing short delay time, no excitation of surface wave, and low radiation loss. The value of tan δ is comparable to loss of superconducting surface resistance above 100 GHz. These results indicate the applicability for the insulator layers in multilayer superconducting electronic devices such as Single Flux Quantum (SFQ) circuits operated at high speed     

Highly reliable, high-C DRAM storage capacitors with CVD TA2O5 films on rugged polysilicon

The authors report on a highly reliable stacked storage capacitor with ultrahigh capacitance using rapid-thermal-annealed low-pressure chemical vapor deposited (LPCVD) Ta₂O₅ films (~100 Å) deposited on NH₃-nitrided rugged poly-Si electrodes. Capacitances as high as 20.4 fF/μ² (corresponding to the thinnest t_ox.eff (16.9 Å) ever reported using LPCVD-Ta₂O₅ and poly-Si technologies) have been achieved with excellent leakage current and time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB) characteristics. Extensive electrical characterization over a wide temperature range (~25-300°C) shows that Ta₂O ₅ films on rugged poly-Si electrodes have a better temperature stability in dielectric leakage and breakdown compared to the films on smooth poly-Si electrodes     

Reduction of current leakage in chemical-vapor deposited Ta2O5 thin-films by oxygen-radical annealing [DRAMdielectric]

The electrical properties of CVD-Ta₂O₅ thin-films are improved by post-deposition oxygen-radical annealing. Since this annealing is carried out at very low pressure (10^-6 torr), the growth of SiO₂ in Ta₂O ₅/Si interface is small, and the residual carbon in the film is reduced. The damage to the Ta₂O₅ film caused by oxygen ion bombardment is negligible, because few charged particles reach the film. A critical voltage V_crit of 1.45 V for the leakage current less than 10^-8 A/cm² was realized by these Ta₂O₅ films with the effective thickness t_eff of 2.59 nm. The V_crit value for oxygen-radical annealing is higher than that for oxygen-plasma annealing     

Deposition of uniform Zr-Sn-Ti-O films by on-axis reactivesputtering

We describe the deposition of amorphous Zr-Sn-Ti-O (aZTT) dielectric thin films using conventional on-axis reactive sputtering. Thin films of composition Zr_0.2Sn_0.2Ti_0.6 O₂ have excellent dielectric properties: 40-50-nm thick films with a dielectric constant of 50-70 were obtained, depending on the processing conditions, yielding a specific capacitance of 9-17 fF/μm². Breakdown fields were measured to be 3-5 MV/cm, yielding a figure of merit εε₀E_br=15-30 μC/cm², up to eightfold higher than conventional deposited SiO₂. Leakage currents, measured at 1.0 MV/cm, were in the range 10^-9-10^-7 A/cm². This material appears well-suited for use in Si-IC device technology, for example as storage capacitors in DRAM     

Critical current characteristics of YBa2Cu3O7 thin films on (110) SrTiO3

The material and electrical characteristics of YBa₂Cu ₃O₇ (YBCO) thin films deposited by inverted cylindrical magnetron sputtering on (110) SrTiO₃ (STO) were investigated. X-ray diffractometry shows the grain orientations to be predominantly the YBCO (110) and (103) with no evidence of c-axis grains, Electron micrographs show the film surface to consist of coupled elongated grains parallel to the (110) STO edge. The films were patterned into small 2.5 mm squares parallel to the substrate edges for electrical characterization. Transport currents parallel and perpendicular to the (110) substrate edge showed a 945:1 anisotropy in film resistance and a factor of two in critical current density for temperatures below 60% of the transition temperature (T_c). The temperature dependence of the critical current near T_c was quadratic-like and strongly dependent on the value of T_c used in the analysis. For the two orientations, there was nearly a 6 K difference in T_c as determined by the point at which the critical current became zero. The response of the critical current to small magnetic fields was greater for transport current along the c-axis direction and was observable over a temperature interval nearly four times greater than for current along the basal plain. These YBCO thin films have good response to small magnetic fields and are suitable for vortex flow device development     

Slotline ring resonator test method for high-Tcsuperconducting films

A novel method of testing high-T_c superconducting (HTS) films by means of a slotline ring-like resonator is presented. This method does not require any metallic contact with the HTS films and ensures that the tests have quick turnaround times. Small samples can be tested very easily. The resonator circuit used has been studied analytically using Sonnet Inc.'s em software. The parameters of the HTS films are obtained by fitting the theoretical results to the experimental ones. YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ films on LaAlO₃ have been tested and the theoretical and experimental results are presented and compared. The results match very well. This method is useful for quick screening HTS films since no patterning of the film is required     

YBa2Cu3O7 superconductors forhigh-speed interconnects

The surface resistance of high-quality YBa₂Cu₃ O₇ superconducting films measured over a frequency range from 10 to 500 GHz using high-speed optoelectronic techniques is discussed. A direct comparison is made with the surface resistance of gold and superconducting niobium conductors. Using the measured surface resistance, the propagation characteristic of interconnects based on YBa ₂Cu₃O₇ superconductors at 77 K is simulated and compared to that of gold transmission lines at 77 K and superconducting niobium lines at 7.7 K     

Conduction mechanisms in barium tantalates films and modificationof interfacial barrier height

The leakage current-voltage characteristics of rf-magnetron sputtered BaTa₂O₆ film in a capacitor with the top aluminum and the bottom indium-tin-oxide electrodes have been investigated as a function of applied field and temperature. In order to study the effect of the surface treatment on the electrical characteristics of as-deposited film we performed an oxygen plasma treatment on BaTa₂O₆ surface. The dc current-voltage, bipolar pulse charge-voltage, dc current-time, and small ac signal capacitance-frequency characteristics were measured to study the electrical and the dielectric properties of BaTa₂O ₆ thin film. All of the BaTa₂O₆ films in this study exhibited a low leakage current, a high breakdown field strength (3-4.5 MV/cm), and a high dielectric constant (20-30). From the temperature dependence of the leakage current, we could conclude that the dominant conduction mechanism under high electrical fields (>1 MV/cm) is ascribed to the Schottky emission while the ohmic conduction is dominant at low electrical fields (<1 MV/cm). Furthermore, the oxygen plasma treatment on the surface of as-deposited BaTa₂O ₆ resulted in a lowering of the interface barrier height and thus, a reduction of the leakage current at Al under a negative bias. This can be explained by the formation of Ba-rich metallic layer by surface etching effect and by filling the oxygen vacancies in the bulk     

The propagation characteristics of wave-guiding structures withvery thin superconductors; application to coplanar waveguide YBa2Cu3O7-x resonators

The propagation characteristics of waveguiding structures with superconductors which are thin compared to the magnetic penetration depth are analyzed. The complex propagation constant is evaluated within the framework of the modified spectral domain method without the need for numerical calculations in the complex plane. Good agreement is found with the results of other methods. The numerical analysis is instrumental in deducing results for the penetration depth and the surface resistance of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x thin films on sapphire with a PrBa₂Cu₃O_7-x buffer layer. Recent observations of a non-single-gap BCS temperature dependence are confirmed     

Oxidized Ta2O5/Si3N4dielectric films on poly-crystalline Si for dRAMs

A dielectric film technology characterized by a novel multilayer structure formed by oxidation of Ta₂O₅/Si₃ N₄ films on polysilicon has been developed to realize high-density dRAMs. The dry oxidation of the Ta₂O₅/Si₃N₄ layers was performed at temperatures higher than 900°C. This film has a capacitance per unit area from 5.5 to 6.0 fF/ μm², which is equivalent to that of a 6.0- to 6.5-nm-thick SiO₂. The leakage current at an effective electric field of 5 MV/cm is less than 10^-9 A/cm². Under such an electric field, the extrapolated time to failure for 50% cumulative failure can be as high as 1000 years     

Performance Improvement of $hbox{Sm}_{2}hbox{O}_{3}$ MIM Capacitors by Using Plasma Treatment After Dielectric Formation

In this letter, we investigate the dependence of the performance of metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors with Sm₂O₃ dielectric on plasma treatment (PT) performed before Sm₂O₃ deposition, after Sm₂O₃ deposition, or both before and after Sm₂O₃ deposition. By performing PT in N₂ ambient (PTN) after Sm₂O₃ dielectric formation, the effective quadratic voltage coefficient of capacitance (VCC) can be reduced from 498 to 234 ppm/V² and the effective linear VCC can be reduced from 742.3 to 172 ppm/V for MIM capacitor with Sm₂O₃ dielectric having a capacitance density of ~ 7.5 fF/mum². The leakage current density at +3.3 V can be reduced from 3.44 10^-7 to 1.60 times 10^-8 A/cm² by performing PTN in both before and after Sm₂O₃ deposition. PTN after dielectric formation is an effective way to improve the performance of high-kappa dielectric MIM capacitors for RF and analog/mixed signal IC applications.     

Development of an etchant for selectively etching TiWNxin the presence of electroplated 95%Pb-5%Sn solder

Shrinking die sizes and increasing I/O density is motivating the push toward flip chip packages. A flip chip interconnection system with a under bump metallurgy stack containing sputtered TiWN_X/sputtered Cu/electroplated Cu stud/electroplated 95%Pb-5%Sn was developed. An important step in the above process is the selective etching of the sputtered Cu bus layer and the TiWN_X barrier layer, in the presence of the Pb-Sn solder. The Cu bus layer was selectively etched using commercial etchants. However, no commercial etchants were available for selectively etching the TiWN_X layer, H₂O₂-NH₄OH based etching systems, popularly known as Standard Clean-1 cleaning solutions, have been extensively used to clean silicon wafers in front end wafer fabrication where only trace metal contamination exists. Since metals like lead, copper, titanium, tin and tungsten catalyze the heterogeneous decomposition of the peroxide, the unstable H₂O₂-NH₄OH based etching systems are rarely used to etch metal films. In this paper the development of a H ₂O₂-NH₄OH based etchant to selectively etch the sputtered TiWN_X films in the presence of electroplated 95%Pb-5%Sn solder bumps is discussed. A 2³ full factorial experiment with mid point was conducted to establish the etchant composition, as well as process temperature, that give satisfactory responses with respect to etch time, permissable undercut of the Cu stud (caused by the NH₄OH), and acceptable bump shape after reflow. Statistical analysis was used to understand the significant factors influencing the etch rate and undercut. An etchant containing 6% by volume of 30%-H₂O₂ and 0.75% by volume of 30%-NH₄OH operated at a temperature of 37°C was found to give satisfactory results     

Increasing the current density of dielectric-base transistors withan MgO emitter-base barrier

We measured the current-voltage characteristics of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x/oxide/n-SrTiO₃ diodes using NdGaO₃, LaAlO₃, CeO₂, and MgO as the oxide. MgO films had the highest current density. We then fabricated dielectric-base transistors with a YBa₂Cu₃ O_7-x(YBCO) emitter/collector on a SrTiO₃ dielectric base with an MgO barrier. The transistors had both voltage and current gains exceeding unity at 4.2 K. The emitter current density was about 4×10³ A/cm² at a collector-emitter voltage of 10 V and base-emitter voltage 10 V; this is 2 to 3 orders of magnitude larger than that of transistors with NdGaO₃ emitter-base barrier. We obtained a transconductance of around 0.4 mS at a collector-emitter voltage of 10 V for a device with a 6-μm-diameter emitter     

Reliable Low-Cost Fabrication of Low-Loss $hbox{Al}_{2}hbox{O} _{3}{:}hbox{Er}^{3+}$ Waveguides With 5.4-dB Optical Gain

A reliable and reproducible deposition process for the fabrication of Al₂O₃ waveguides with losses as low as 0.1 dB/cm has been developed. The thin films are grown at ~ 5 nm/min deposition rate and exhibit excellent thickness uniformity within 1% over 50times50 mm² area and no detectable OH^- incorporation. For applications of the Al₂O₃ films in compact, integrated optical devices, a high-quality channel waveguide fabrication process is utilized. Planar and channel propagation losses as low as 0.1 and 0.2 dB/cm, respectively, are demonstrated. For the development of active integrated optical functions, the implementation of rare-earth-ion doping is investigated by cosputtering of erbium during the Al₂O₃ layer growth. Dopant levels between 0.2-5times10²⁰ cm^-3 are studied. At Er³⁺ concentrations of interest for optical amplification, a lifetime of the ⁴I_13/2 level as long as 7 ms is measured. Gain measurements over 6.4-cm propagation length in a 700-nm-thick Al₂O₃:Er³⁺ channel waveguide result in net optical gain over a 41-nm-wide wavelength range between 1526-1567 nm with a maximum of 5.4 dB at 1533 nm.