Characterization of nitrided SiC(1 1‾ 00) MOS structures by means of electrical measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Interface nitridation in nitric oxide is a standard technique for improving the performance of silicon carbide (SiC) metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices. In this study, we focused on m-face SiC MOS structures and investigated the impact of nitridation by means of electrical measurements and X-ra...

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Veröffentlicht in:Materials science in semiconductor processing 2024-06, Vol.175, p.108251, Article 108251
Hauptverfasser: Kobayashi, Takuma, Suzuki, Asato, Nakanuma, Takato, Sometani, Mitsuru, Okamoto, Mitsuo, Yoshigoe, Akitaka, Shimura, Takayoshi, Watanabe, Heiji
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Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:Interface nitridation in nitric oxide is a standard technique for improving the performance of silicon carbide (SiC) metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices. In this study, we focused on m-face SiC MOS structures and investigated the impact of nitridation by means of electrical measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Gate leakage characteristics were measured in a wide temperature range of about −150 – 100 °C, which clarified that nitridation leads to an unwanted increase in the Fowler-Nordheim leakage current. Scanning XPS measurements revealed that the amount of nitrogen incorporated at the m-face MOS interface could reach about 2.3 times higher than the Si-face MOS interface. The incorporation of nitrogen likely reduces the conduction band offset at the SiO2/SiC interface, thereby increasing the gate leakage. This conclusion was further corroborated in an analysis of band alignment based on synchrotron radiation XPS measurements. Therefore, while nitrided m-face SiC MOS devices exhibit superior on-state performances, they have a limitation in terms of reliability.
ISSN:1369-8001
1873-4081
DOI:10.1016/j.mssp.2024.108251