Measurements of Microstructural, Chemical, Optical, and Electrical Properties of Silicon-Oxygen-Nitrogen Films Prepared by Plasma-Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition
Hong-Ping Ma,
Hong-Liang Lu,
Jia-He Yang,
Xiao-Xi Li,
Tao Wang,
Wei Huang,
Guang-Jie Yuan,
Fadei F. Komarov,
David Wei Zhang
Affiliations
Hong-Ping Ma
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Hong-Liang Lu
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Jia-He Yang
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Xiao-Xi Li
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Tao Wang
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Wei Huang
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Guang-Jie Yuan
SMIT Center, School of Automation and Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai University, Shanghai 201800, China
Fadei F. Komarov
A.N. Sevchenko Institute of Applied Physical Problems, Belarusian State University, 220045 Minsk, Belarus
David Wei Zhang
State Key Laboratory of ASIC and System, Shanghai Institute of Intelligent Electronics & Systems, School of Microelectronics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
In this study, silicon nitride (SiNx) thin films with different oxygen concentration (i.e., SiON film) were precisely deposited by plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition on Si (100) substrates. Thus, the effect of oxygen concentration on film properties is able to be comparatively studied and various valuable results are obtained. In detail, x-ray reflectivity, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and spectroscopic ellipsometry are used to systematically characterize the microstructural, optical, and electrical properties of SiON film. The experimental results indicate that the surface roughness increases from 0.13 to 0.2 nm as the oxygen concentration decreases. The refractive index of the SiON film reveals an increase from 1.55 to 1.86 with decreasing oxygen concentration. Accordingly, the band-gap energy of these films determined by oxygen 1s-peak analysis decreases from 6.2 to 4.8 eV. Moreover, the I-V tests demonstrate that the film exhibits lower leakage current and better insulation for higher oxygen concentration in film. These results indicate that oxygen affects microstructural, optical, and electrical properties of the prepared SiNx film.
