Degradation in thin-film SOI MOSFET's caused by single-transistorlatch

The measurement of anomalous hot-carrier damage in thin-film n-channel SOI MOSFETs is reported. Due to the presence of a parasitic bipolar transistor between the source and drain, the minimum drain voltage for breakdown in these devices occurs when the device is biased in subthreshold. Using charge-pumping measurements, it is shown that if the device is biased in this regime, where single-transistor latch occurs, hot holes are injected into the gate oxide near the drain. Consequently, the maximum allowable drain voltage for these devices is governed by the parasitic bipolar properties of the SOI MOSFET     

A method for the prediction of hot-carrier lifetime in floating SOINMOSFETs

A concept was presented for the prediction of the device lifetimes for the hot-carrier effect (hot-carrier lifetimes) in floating SOI MOSFETs. The concept is that hot-carrier lifetimes in floating SOI MOSFETs can be predicted by estimating the hole current. In order to verify the validity of this concept, the hole current was investigated using device simulation. The results showed that the ratio of the hole current to the drain current in a floating-body SOI MOSFET is approximately equal to the ratio of substrate current to drain current in a body-tied one. Based on this fact, a method for accurately predicting the hot-carrier lifetime in floating-body SOI MOSFETs was proposed. The hot-carrier lifetime predicted with this method agreed well with the experimental results. This study showed that only the drain current difference between floating and body-tied structures results in lifetime differences, and there is no special effect on hot-carrier degradation in floating SOI MOSFETs. In this prediction, therefore, floating SOI MOSFETs can be treated in the same way as bulk MOSFETs. Hot-carrier lifetimes in floating SOI MOSFETs can be predicted using the hole current, while substrate currents are used in bulk MOSFETs     

Modeling of the subthreshold characteristics of SOI MOSFETs withfloating body

n-channel SOI MOSFETs with floating bodies show a threshold voltage shift and an improvement in subthreshold slope at high drain biases. The magnitude of this effect depends on the device parameters and the starting SOI substrate. A simple device model is presented that explains the observed characteristics to be due to MOS back-bias effects resulting from the positively charged floating body. The improvement in the subthreshold slope is the outcome of positive feedback between the body potential and the transistor channel current     

Numerical analysis of alpha-particle-induced soft errors in SOI MOSdevices

Alpha-particle-induced soft errors in SOI MOSFETs are examined using a three-dimensional device simulation. A bipolar mechanism induced by the alpha-particle incidence is investigated in detail when an alpha particle penetrates from the drain region toward the source region. In SOI MOSFETs, the drain collected and source injected charges are mainly due to a bipolar mechanism. The bipolar mechanism in SOI MOSFETs is quite different from that which has been so far reported in bulk MOSFETs, and operates with a very small current of less than 1 nA for a very long time of 1 ns to 100 ms. The drain collected and source injected charges are strongly dependent on various device parameters and lifetimes. The results suggest that the bipolar mechanism is a significant cause of soft errors in SOI MOSFETs     

Single-transistor-latch-induced degradation of front- andback-channel thin-film SOI transistors

The front- and back-channel transistor characteristics in thin-film silicon-on-insulator (SOI) MOSFETs have been studied before and after front-channel hot-carrier stress resulting from single-transistor latch. This stress causes the following significant changes: (a) a reduction of the front-channel current for a given gate voltage, (b) an increase in front-channel drain-source breakdown voltage when measured in the reverse mode, and (c) a decrease in the back-channel transconductance. These changes can be attributed to the hot-carrier induced interface traps on both front and back interfaces near the drain junction     

Modeling of drain current overshoot and recombination lifetimeextraction in floating-body submicron SOI MOSFETs

This work reports on a new general modeling of recombination-based mechanisms related to electrically floating-body partially-depleted (PD) SOI MOSFETs. The model describes drain current overshoots induced when turning on the transistor gate and suggests a novel extraction method for the recombination lifetime in the silicon film. We show that the recombination process associated with drain current overshoots in PD silicon-on-insulator (SOI) MOSFETs takes place mainly in the depletion region and not in the neutral region as in case of pulsed MOS capacitors. Associated with existing techniques for generation lifetime extraction, our model offers, for the first time, the possibility of complete and rapid characterization for both generation and recombination lifetime using drain current transients in floating-body SOI MOSFETs. The model is used in order to characterize submicron SOI devices, allowing a thorough investigation of technological parameters impact on floating-body-induced transient mechanisms     

Abnormal drain current (ADC) effect and its mechanism in FD SOI MOSFETs

A new type of abnormal drain current (ADC) effect in fully depleted (FD) silicon-on-insulator (SOI) MOSFETs is reported. It is found that the drain current becomes abnormally large for specific front- and back-gate voltages. The drain current exhibits a transient effect due to the floating body behavior and no longer follows the conventional interface coupling theory for these specific front- and back-gate bias conditions. It is shown that the ADC can be generated by the combination of gate-induced drain leakage, transient effects, and parasitic bipolar transistor action in FD SOI MOSFETs.     

A silicon/indium arsenide source structure to suppress the parasitic bipolar-induced breakdown effect in SOI MOSFETs

We introduce Silicon/indium arsenide (Si/InAs) source submicron-device structure in order to minimize the impact of floating body effect on both the drain breakdown voltage and single transistor latch in ultra thin SOI MOSFETs. The potential barrier of valence band between source and body reduces by applying the Indium Arsenide (InAs) layer at the source region. Therefore, we can improve the drain breakdown by suppressing the parasitic NPN bipolar device and the hole accumulation in the body. As confirmed by 2D simulation results, the proposed structure provides the excellent performance compared with a conventional SOI MOSFET thus improving the reliability of this structure in VLSI applications.     

Off-leakage and drive current characteristics of sub-100-nm SOI MOSFETs and impact of quantum tunnel current

This paper estimates the off-leakage current (I/sub off/) and drive current (I/sub on/) of various SOI MOSFETs by simulations based on the hydrodynamic-transport model; the band-to-band tunneling (BBT) effect at the drain is taken into consideration. Here, the simulations are done for SOI structures with a thick channel where the distinct quantization of energy is irrelevant to the present results. It is shown that merging hydrodynamic transport with the BBT effect is indispensable if realistic I/sub off/ estimates are to be achieved. It is shown that the symmetric double-gate SOI MOSFET does not always offer better drivability than other SOI MOSFETs, and that a single-gate SOI MOSFET with carefully selected parameters exhibits superior performance to double-gate SOI MOSFETs. It is also demonstrated that the quantum tunnel current is not significant, even in 20-nm channel SOI MOSFETs. The results suggest that we can still employ the conventional semi-classical method to estimate the off-leakage current of sub-100-nm channel low-power SOI MOSFETs.     

Analytical modeling of drain current and RF performance for double-gate fully depleted nanoscale SOI MOSFETs

A new 2D analytical drain current model is presented for symmetric double-gate fully depleted nanoscale SOI MOSFETs. Investigation of device parameters like transconductance for double-gate fully depleted nanoscale SOI MOSFETs is also carried out. Finally this work is concluded by modeling the cut-off frequency, which is one of the main figures of merit for analog/RF performance for double-gate fully depleted nanoscale SOI MOSFETs. The results of the modeling are compared with those obtained by a 2D ATLAS device simulator to verify the accuracy of the proposed model.     

History dependence of output characteristics ofsilicon-on-insulator (SOI) MOSFETs

It is demonstrated that the drain current overshoot in partially depleted SOI MOSFETs has a significant history dependence or memory effect, even in the absence of impact ionization under low drain biases. The measured output characteristics of partially depleted SOI MOSFETs are shown to be dynamically dependent on their switching history, frequency, and bias conditions, due to the finite time constants of carrier generation (thermal or impact ionization) and recombination in the floating body     

A method to extract mobility degradation and total seriesresistance of fully-depleted SOI MOSFETs

Free-carrier mobility degradation in the channel and drain/source series resistance are two important parameters limiting the performance of MOS devices. In this paper, we present a method to extract these parameters from the drain current versus gate voltage characteristics of fully-depleted (FD) SOI MOSFETs operating in the saturation region. This method is developed based on an integration function which reduces errors associated with the extraction procedure and on the DC characteristics of MOS devices having several different channel lengths. Simulation results and measured data of FD SOI MOSFETs are used to test and verify the method developed     

A Novel Body-tied Silicon-On-Insulator(SOI) n-channel Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistor with Grounded Body Electrode

A novel body-tied silicon-on-insulator(SOI) n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor with grounded body electrode named GBSOI nMOSFET has been developed by wafer bonding and etch-back technology. It has no floating body effect such as kink phenomena on the drain current curves, single-transistor latch and drain current overshoot inherent in a normal SOI device with floating body. We have characterized the interface trap density, kink phenomena on the drain current (I_DS-V_DS) curves, substrate resistance effect on the I_DS-V_DS curves, subthreshold current characteristics and single transistor latch of these transistors. We have confirmed that the GBSOI structure is suitable for high-speed and low-voltage VLSI circuits.     

A unified analytical fully depleted and partially depleted SOIMOSFET model

In this paper we present a unified analytical drain current model for fully depleted and partially depleted SOI MOSFETs. The analytical model is based on a nonpinned surface potential approach and is valid in all regions of operation. It was developed by starting from a two-dimensional Poisson equation, and its accuracy has been verified with the experimental data of SOI MOSFETs     

Validation of bulk-charge effect parameter extraction in MOSFETs

Our recently proposed method to extract the bulk-charge effect parameter in MOSFETs is scrutinized by studying SOI devices, a-Si:H TFTs and short- as well as long-channel bulk MOSFETs. The method requires measuring the drain current as a function of gate voltage at two small values of drain voltage chosen in the linear region of operation.     

Fully-depleted SOI CMOS for analog applications

Fully-depleted (FD) SOI MOSFETs offer near-ideal properties for analog applications. In particular their high transconductance to drain current ratio allows one to obtain a higher gain than from bulk devices, and the reduced body effect permits one to fabricate more efficient pass gates. The excellent behavior of SOI MOSFETs at high temperature or at gigahertz frequencies is outlined as well     

Analysis of the drain breakdown mechanism in ultra-thin-film SOIMOSFETs

The drain breakdown phenomenon in ultra-thin-film (silicon-on-insulator) SOI MOSFETs has been studied. Two-dimensional simulation revealed that the thinning of the SOI film brings about an increase in the drain electric field due to the two-dimensional effect, causing a significant lowering in the drain breakdown voltage, as has been commonly seen in ultra-thin-film SOI MOSFETs. The simulation also showed that the lowered drain breakdown voltage recovered almost to its original value when the drain SOI thickness was restored, suggesting that the drain structure, rather than the source, plays a major role in determining the drain breakdown voltage. Experiments using an asymmetric device structure supported this hypothesis, showing that the breakdown voltage was mostly dependent on the drain structure, the initial potential barrier height at the source-SOI-body junction being only a minor factor. Transient simulation was also carried out to investigate the detailed breakdown process, showing that holes accumulate near the source-SOI-body junction at a high drain bias, eventually forward-biasing the junction. These results indicate that a careful drain design and/or proper choice of the SOI thickness as well as the supply voltage are quite important for realizing high performance of ultra-thin-film SOI MOSFETs     

Short channel models and scaling limits of SOI and bulk MOSFETs

Analytical device-physics-based models for subthreshold drain current in short channel SOI MOSFETs facilitate accurate and efficient circuit simulation. These models also enable prediction of device scaling limits determined by subthreshold conduction and comparison of these limits with bulk MOSFETs for the same threshold and supply voltages     

The behavior of narrow-width SOI MOSFETs with MESA isolation

Narrow-width effects in thin-film silicon on insulator (SOI) MOSFETs with MESA isolation technology have been studied theoretically and experimentally. As the channel width of the MOSFET is scaled down, the gate control of the channel potential is enhanced. It leads to the suppression of drain current dependence on substrate bias and punchthrough effect in narrow-width devices. The variation of threshold voltage with the channel width is also studied and is found to have a strong dependence on thickness of silicon film, interface charges in the buried oxide and channel type of SOI MOSFETs     

Substrate bias dependence of subthreshold slopes in fully depletedsilicon-on-insulator MOSFET's

Subthreshold slopes in submicrometer n-channel MOSFETs in depleted silicon-on-insulator (SOI) films were measured as a function of substrate bias and temperature, as well as drain bias. It is found that for low drain voltage, a simple capacitor model can explain the result. For large drain voltages, anomalously sharp threshold slopes are observed for very negative substrate biases, but the anomalous effects are greatly reduced with a more positive substrate bias. A qualitative model based on the charge state of the lower SOI interface is proposed to explain the dependence of the anomalous effects on substrate bias