Measurements of the widths of transition regions at Si-SiO2 interfaces in metal-oxide-semiconductor structures from quantum oscillations in Fowler-Nordheim tunneling current

Transition regions at Si-SiO2 interfaces contain excess suboxide bonding ar rangements, which can give rise to electronically active defects. A method is presented for measuring the widths of these regions in metal-oxide-semic onductor structures using Fowler-Nordheim tunneling current oscillations. A comparison between the proposed algorithm and a first-principles calculati on shows that this algorithm provides an accurate and convenient tool to de termine the width of the transition region. It also provides insights into the effect of transition regions on tunneling current oscillations. The wid ths are observed to be around 0.3 nm using this method. (C) 2001 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.