Publications Details
Precursor ion damage and single event gate rupture in thin oxides
Gate oxide electric fields are expected to increase to greater than 5 MV/cm as feature size approaches 0.1 micrometers in advanced integrated circuit (IC) technologies. Work by Johnston, et al. raised the concern that single event gate rupture (SEGR) may limit the scaling of advanced ICs for space applications. SEGR has also been observed in field programmable gate arrays, which rely on thin dielectrics for electrical programming at very high electric fields. The focus of this effort is to further explore the mechanisms for SEGR in thin gate oxides. The authors examine the characteristics of heavy ion induced breakdown and compare them to ion induced damage in thin gate oxides. Further, the authors study the impact of precursor damage in oxides on SEGR threshold. Finally, they compare thermal and nitrided oxides to see if SEGR is improved by incorporating nitrogen in the oxide.