8.3 of Nitrogen Incorporation in Ultrathin Si02 on the chemical and Electronic Structures of the Si0#3(100) Interface

The introduction of nitrogen atoms into ultrathin gate Si02 becomes increasingly important to suppress the boron penetration and improve the hot-camer immunity for the scaling of the gate oxide thickness of CMOS devices in the range of 3-1.5nm [l-31. The precise control of the nitrogen concentration and its profile in such an ultrathin oxide is one of major research issues to obtain a reliable gate dielectric. The nitrogen bonding features in the Si02 network and its influence on the Si02 network structure and electronic-active defects have yet to be studied in detail so as to gain a better understanding of the role of the nitrogen incorporation.