Title :
Four Point Probe Structures With Buried and Surface Electrodes for the Electrical Characterization of Ultrathin Conducting Films
Author :
Groenland, Alfons W. ; Wolters, Rob A M ; Kovalgin, Alexey Y. ; Schmitz, Jurriaan
Author_Institution :
Semicond. Components, Univ. of Twente, Enschede, Netherlands
fDate :
5/1/2012 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
Test structures for the electrical characterization of ultrathin conductive films are presented based on electrodes on which the ultrathin film is deposited. Two different designs are discussed: a novel design with buried electrodes and a conventional design with electrodes at the surface. This paper includes test structure design and fabrication, and the electrical characterization of atomic layer deposition TiN films down to 4 nm. We demonstrate that the novel test structures provide the same results as the conventional structures, and have the advantage of broader materials choice (i.e., conductor-dielectric combination). The proposed structures can be used successfully to characterize sub-10 nm films.
Keywords :
atomic layer deposition; conducting materials; electrodes; semiconductor thin films; TiN; atomic layer deposition; broader materials choice; buried electrodes; conductor-dielectric combination; conventional design; electrical characterization; point probe structures; surface electrodes; test structure design; test structure fabrication; test structures; ultrathin conducting films; ultrathin conductive films; Contacts; Electrodes; Films; Probes; Semiconductor device measurement; Temperature measurement; Tin; Four-point probe; resistivity; thin conducting films;
Journal_Title :
Semiconductor Manufacturing, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TSM.2011.2181674