Oxide layers with a thickness from 2 to 5nm were grown on (100) Si uti
lizing rapid thermal oxidation. RTO is shown to be a reliable method t
o obtain good quality SiO2 tunnel barriers. An analytical model is use
d to discuss the charge transport in Al/SiO2/n-Si tunnel diodes quanti
tatively. The influence of an in situ hydrogen anneal on the SiO2/Si i
nterface is examined.