Determination of oxide properties with a new fast tunneling current measurement protocol

In conclusion, dynamic measurement of tunneling currents allows the monitoring of various oxide degradation effects for a wide range of stress times (from a few microseconds to a few hours), including the typical durations required for ´write´ and ´erase´ operations on NVM cells. Transient effects such as drain deep depletion have been evidenced. Overall a better electric characterization of floating gate / tunnel oxide / drain structures can be expected from this new experimental protocol, leading to a better understanding of NVM cells.