Electrical conduction and dielectric breakdown in sputter-deposited silicon dioxide films on silicon

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Abstract
Silicon dioxide films, 8–100 nm thick, are sputter deposited in an oxygen-argon atmosphere onto a silicon substrate at 200 °C. Electrical conduction and dielectric breakdown in oxygen-argon sputter-deposited film are measured using metal-oxide-semiconductor capacitors and compared with those in thermal dioxide film. Moreover, their mechanisms are investigated. Thin oxygen-argon sputter-deposited film is found to have the same low electrical conduction and high dielectric breakdown as thermal dioxide film. Electrical conduction through oxygen-argon sputter-deposited film shows small temperature dependence and Fowler–Nordheim characteristics. For a wide range of film thickness, the breakdown field in oxygen-argon sputter-deposited film correlates well with that in thermal dioxide film and with the impact ionization/recombination model. Thus, the electrical conduction mechanism through oxygen-argon sputter-deposited silicon dioxide film is Fowler–Nordheim tunneling, and dielectric breakdown is explained by the impact ionization/recombination model.