Stress induced leakage currents in N-MOSFETs submitted to channel hot carrier injections

In this study, we report on the electrical properties of the stress induced leakage current which appears through a 4.7 nm-thick SiO2 gate oxide of N- channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors after localized channel hot carrier injections and Fowler-Nordheim uniform injections. We s how that channel hot hole injections are able to induce a stress leakage cu rrent leading at longer times to a gate current versus gate voltage similar to the one obtained after uniform injections in the Fowler-Nordheim mode, and well fitted by a Schottky law. However, the kinetics of both degradatio n modes differ. Other localized hot carrier injection modes (channel hot el ectron injections) appear to be less efficient in producing stress induced leakage current. Hole injection at the Si/SiO2 interface, present in both c hannel hole injections and negative gate voltage Fowler-Nordheim stresses v ia the anode hole injection mechanism, is found to be the key phenomenon le ading to stress induced leakage current generation. (C) 1999 Elsevier Scien ce B.V. All rights reserved.