THERMAL OXIDATION EFFECT ON ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF MOS CAPACITORS WITH EMBEDDED Ge NANOCRYSTALS

A 2D layer of spherical, crystalline Ge nanodots embedded in a SiO 2 layer was formed by low pressure chemical vapor deposition combined with furnace oxidation and rapid thermal annealing. The samples were characterized structurally by using transmission electron microscopy in plan-view and cross-section geometries. It was found that the formation of highdensity Ge dots took place due to oxidation induced by the Ge segregation. Electrical properties were controlled by measuring C–V and I–V characteristics after the formation of MOS capacitors in different oxidation conditions and the ambient medium. A strong evidence of the charge storage effect on the crystalline Ge-nanodot layer was demonstrated by the hysteresis behavior of the high-frequency C–V curves. It is shown that dry oxidation followed by its reduction increases the hysteresis value compared to wet oxidation conditions. This hysteresis behavior is discussed taking into account the decrease in the Ge concentration and a possible effect of low temperature GeO evaporation is followed by wet oxidation.