• DocumentCode
    1643663
  • Title

    Explanation of soft and hard breakdown and its consequences for area scaling

  • Author

    Alam, M.A. ; Weir, B. ; Bude, J. ; Silverman, P. ; Monroe, D.

  • Author_Institution
    Lucent Technol., AT&T Bell Labs., Murray Hill, NJ, USA
  • fYear
    1999
  • Firstpage
    449
  • Lastpage
    452
  • Abstract
    A simple theory of soft breakdown, that can explain wide ranging experimental data, is proposed. In addition, this model identifies the appropriate conditions for which soft breakdown turns into hard breakdown and the origin of bimodal failure distribution. Connections to older theories for thicker oxides are established and consequences of the new theory for the reliability of ultra-thin gate oxides are analyzed.
  • Keywords
    MOS integrated circuits; failure analysis; insulating thin films; integrated circuit modelling; integrated circuit reliability; semiconductor device breakdown; MOSFET circuits; area scaling; bimodal failure distribution; hard breakdown; reliability; soft breakdown; ultra-thin gate oxides; Breakdown voltage; Capacitors; Circuit testing; Dielectric breakdown; Electric breakdown; Equivalent circuits; Spine; Stress; Thermal resistance; Tunneling;
  • fLanguage
    English
  • Publisher
    ieee
  • Conference_Titel
    Electron Devices Meeting, 1999. IEDM '99. Technical Digest. International
  • Conference_Location
    Washington, DC, USA
  • Print_ISBN
    0-7803-5410-9
  • Type

    conf

  • DOI
    10.1109/IEDM.1999.824190
  • Filename
    824190