Novel investigation of edge effects in SIMOX transistors

Results related to the edge effects in SIMOX (separation by implementation of oxygen) devices are derived using complementary electrical characterization methods. The parallel transistors activated at the sidewalls of the silicon islands can dominate the subthreshold characteristics and cause a substantial shift of the threshold voltage. This parasitic conduction can also result in high leakage currents and logic upsets. Modifications of conventional LOCOS and MESA technologies by a high doping of the sidewalls have not totally eliminated the parasitic effects and circuit fabrication methods are under investigation. As the understanding of the edge-effects is crucial for the improvement of the technology, static I_D(V_G), charge pumping and noise measurements are combined to extract new information