MIS characterization and modeling of the electrical properties of the epitaxial Caf2/Si(111) interface

CaF₂ layers have grown by molecular beam epitaxy on bothn-type andp- type Si(111). Capacitance-voltage (C-V) and current-voltage (I-V) measurements have been made on metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) capacitors to characterize these structures. For devices onp-type Si, C-V characteristics show only the insulator value of the capacitance over a wide range of applied voltages, indicating an accumulated surface. At room temperature, C-V characteristics ofn-type devices show the minimum value of the capacitance (corresponding to inversion) for small voltages, but modulation of the capacitance at larger voltages. At 200 K, this modulation is no longer present in the C-V curves. I-V curves show a rapid increase in the leakage current at relatively low fields at room temperature, and this leakage decreases dramatically with temperature. These results are largely independent of cleaning procedure, growth temperature, and the degree of misalignment of the substrate. The characteristics are modeled by assuming the Fermi level to be pinned at the valence-band edge, and the modulation in the C-V characteristics ofn-type samples to be driven by leakage currents. Work done at GE while a graduate student in the School of Electrical Engineering, Cornell University. Present address: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109.