A performance comparison of advanced SOI technologies

Summary form only given. Devices have been fabricated using conventional SOS, rapid thermal anneal (RTA) SOS, solid-phase epitaxy and regrowth (SPEAR) SOS, RTA-SPEAR SOS, separation by implantation of oxygen (SIMOX), RTA-SIMOX, and zone-melt recrystallization (ZMR) wafers. The process sequence used was a double-level-metal 1.25-μm CMOS/SOS process. A comprehensive test vehicle featuring 16 K and 64 K SRAMs was used to allow both parametric and functional characterization. For 0.3-μm silicon film thickness on SOS, SPEAR processing resulted in a 30% improvement in carrier mobilities and a 10-20% improvement in device saturation currents over conventional SOS. No significant leakage improvement was observed. RTA processing at 1390°C has shown potential for performance enhancement on SOS. Mobility improvements of 10-20% have been demonstrated, while drain leakage was unchanged. Preliminary SIMOX results have indicated improvements of 50% for electron mobilities, with hole mobilities unchanged over conventional SOS. Drain leakage was two orders of magnitude lower. Characterization results have also been obtained for ZMR, RTA-SPEAR SOS, improved SPEAR-SOS, and improved SIMOX wafers