Id fluctuations by stochastic single-hole trappings in high-κ dielectric p-MOSFETs

Random telegraph noise (RTN) in scaled FETs is one of the biggest concerns in the present and future LSIs. However, RTN in high-kappa gate dielectric FETs have not been fully studied yet. In this paper, we have studied RTN in high-kappa pFETs in comparison with that in SiO₂ pFETs. It is found for the first time that the reduction of the RTN amplitude (DeltaI_d/I_d) by the surface holes is smaller in high-kappa pFETs, comparing to the SiO₂ pFETs. It is also found that slower traps in the high-kappa gate dielectric more severely degrade I_d. It is considered that some key characteristics are understandable in terms of the higher dielectric constant and the smaller barrier height of the high-kappa gate dielectric.