Defect generation in silicon dioxide from soft x-ray synchrotron radiation

Abstract
Generation of fixed positive charge, neutral electron traps, and fixed negative charge in SiO2 due to exposure to monochromatic x-ray radiation in the photon energy range from 300 to 1000 eV in a synchrotron source is reported upon. At a constant exposure level of 2×107 rads, the number of defects generated is approximately independent of x-ray photon energy. The generated defects, independent of x-ray radiation energy, show normal post-metal annealing characteristics.