Probing the Atomic-Scale Mechanisms of Time-Dependent Dielectric Breakdown in Si/SiO₂ MOSFETs (June 2022)

We report on an atomic-scale study of trap generation in the initial/intermediate stages of time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB) in high-field stressed (100) Si/SiO ₂ MOSFETs using two powerful analytical techniques: electrically detected magnetic resonance (EDMR) and near-zero-field magnetoresistance (NZFMR). We find the dominant EDMR-sensitive traps generated throughout the majority of the TDDB process to be silicon dangling bonds at the (100) Si/SiO ₂ interface ( ${ \boldsymbol {P}}_{ \boldsymbol {b} \boldsymbol {0}}$ and ${ \boldsymbol {P}}_{ \boldsymbol {b} \boldsymbol {1}}$ centers) for both the spin-dependent recombination (SDR) and trap-assisted tunneling (SDTAT) processes. We find this generation to be linked to both changes in the calculated interface state densities as well as changes in the NZFMR spectra for recombination events at the interface, indicating a redistribution of mobile magnetic nuclei which we conclude could only be due to the redistribution of hydrogen at the interface. Additionally, we observe the generation of traps known as $\boldsymbol {E}'$ centers in EDMR measurements at lower experimental temperatures via SDR measurements at the interface. Our work strongly suggests the involvement of a rate-limiting step in the tunneling process between the silicon dangling bonds generated at the interface and the ones generated throughout the oxide.