Threshold Voltage Shift Due to Mechanical Stress-Enhanced Plasma Process-Induced Damage in 0.13-$\mu\hbox{m}$ pMOSFET

Abstract

Mechanical stress-enhanced plasma process-induced damage (PPID) in 0.13-µm pMOSFET was investigated. The PPID, which was initially charged neutral, became positively charged during hydrogen annealing, thus, changing the PMOS threshold voltage (V th ). Different device structures were designed to evaluate the mechanical stress effects on PPID. The features of these positive charges, including the PPID induced V th shift, and its channel length dependence were also investigated.Index Terms-Hydrogen anneal, mechanical stress, plasma process-induced damage (PPID), positive oxide charge, threshold voltage shift.