Characterization of LPCVD Silicon Oxynitride Films

Explanation of the Charge Trapping Properties of Silicon Nitride Storage Layers for NVMs—Part II: Atomistic and Electrical Modeling

“…Therefore, we have mainly focused on substitutional point defects based on the introduction of hydrogen in the β-Si 3 N 4 lattice and the addition of further Si in Si-rich SiN layers [12]. This latter excess silicon may lead to the formation of Si-Si and Si-H bonds or Si dangling bonds [30]. The concentration of H atoms used in the atomistic simulations is close to that measured by the SIMS and MIR experiments [10], and this hydrogen incorporation lowers the mass density of the simulated material to a value of 2.98 g/cm 3 , which is in good agreement with the XRR results of part I of this work.…”

Critical evaluation of the state of the art of the analysis of light elements in thin films demonstrated using the examples of SiOXNY and AlOXNY films (IUPAC Technical Report)

“…The beam diameter was approximately 1 mm. For the fitting of the experimental data, the optical behavior of the SiO X N Y films was described by the Bruggeman EMA as a dielectric physical mixture of two phases, SiO 2 and Si 3 N 4 , by utilizing their relative volume fractions. Since the films were inhomogeneous in depth according to AES results, several models for the profiles of the refractive index and the volume fractions were tested by fitting the experimental data.…”

“…Some limitations for this method of analysis are given, such as the necessity to apply calibration standards, the lower accuracy in the determination of light elements, and the closeness of the oxygen and nitrogen peaks as a source of error in the deconvolution. The authors make the wrong statement that bulk standards, though available for SiO 2 , cannot be used, because they give wrong results if used for the quantification of films. As a complementary method, the technique of RBS was used.…”

“…SIMS measurements were performed in [177] on a CAMECA IMS 3f double focusing instrument using Cs + primary ions with a primary ion energy of 5.5 keV and a primary ion current of 10 nA. The sputtered area was 400 × 400 µm 2 , whereas the diameter of the analyzed area was 60 µm. Since quantitative analytical results were needed, depth profiles were recorded.…”

“…The film thicknesses obtained by RBS always were lower than the thickness obtained by ellipsometry. The authors finally had to admit that SiO X N Y films might have a lower density than the bulk material Si 3 N 4 and SiO 2 . Also in this publication, the composition was given by the ratio O/(O+N), the silicon content was not given as a result of the RBS measurements.…”