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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 April 2012
Hafnium dioxide gate dielectrics, prepared by DC magnetron with low-power sputtering deposition followed by a low-temperature thermal oxidation, show greatly improved interfacial and electrical properties. Ellipsometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements show a good stoichiometric HfO2 thin films with a refractive index of 1.9 and an Hf:O ratio of 1:2. The results obtained after analysis, quantification and calculation through XPS depth profile method, angle resolved XPS and interface modeling by XPS data processing software suggest a development of a complex three layer dielectric stack, including hafnium dioxide layer, a narrow interface of hafnium silicate and broad region of oxygen diffusion into silicon wafer. The measured dielectric constant of the HfO2 was about 22. The film band-gap was found to be ∼ 5.2 eV.