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Title: Electron trap level of hydrogen incorporated nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride

Abstract

Hydrogen incorporation into nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride and its effects on electron trap level are analyzed using simulation based on density functional theory with temperature- and pressure-dependent hydrogen chemical potential. If the silicon dangling bonds around a nitrogen vacancy are well separated each other, hydrogen incorporation is energetically stable up to 900 °C, which is in agreement with the experimentally observed desorption temperature. On the other hand, if the dangling bonds strongly interact, the incorporation is energetically unfavorable even at room temperature because of steric hindrance. An electron trap level caused by a nitrogen vacancy becomes shallow by the hydrogen incorporation. An electron is trapped in a deep level created by a silicon dangling bond before hydrogen incorporation, whereas it is trapped in a shallow level created by an anti-bonding state of a silicon-silicon bond after hydrogen incorporation. The simulation results qualitatively explain the experiment, in which reduced hydrogen content in silicon nitride shows superior charge retention characteristics.

Authors:
; ; ;  [1]
  1. Renesas Electronics Corporation, 751 Horiguchi, Hitachinaka, Ibaraki 312-8504 (Japan)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22399260
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Journal of Applied Physics
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 117; Journal Issue: 10; Other Information: (c) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 0021-8979
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; BOUND STATE; COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION; DENSITY FUNCTIONAL METHOD; DESORPTION; ELECTRONS; HYDROGEN; NITROGEN; POTENTIALS; PRESSURE DEPENDENCE; RETENTION; SILICON; SILICON NITRIDES; TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE; TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K; TRAPPING; TRAPS; VACANCIES

Citation Formats

Sonoda, Ken'ichiro, Tsukuda, Eiji, Tanizawa, Motoaki, and Yamaguchi, Yasuo. Electron trap level of hydrogen incorporated nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.1063/1.4914163.
Sonoda, Ken'ichiro, Tsukuda, Eiji, Tanizawa, Motoaki, & Yamaguchi, Yasuo. Electron trap level of hydrogen incorporated nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride. United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4914163
Sonoda, Ken'ichiro, Tsukuda, Eiji, Tanizawa, Motoaki, and Yamaguchi, Yasuo. 2015. "Electron trap level of hydrogen incorporated nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride". United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4914163.
@article{osti_22399260,
title = {Electron trap level of hydrogen incorporated nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride},
author = {Sonoda, Ken'ichiro and Tsukuda, Eiji and Tanizawa, Motoaki and Yamaguchi, Yasuo},
abstractNote = {Hydrogen incorporation into nitrogen vacancies in silicon nitride and its effects on electron trap level are analyzed using simulation based on density functional theory with temperature- and pressure-dependent hydrogen chemical potential. If the silicon dangling bonds around a nitrogen vacancy are well separated each other, hydrogen incorporation is energetically stable up to 900 °C, which is in agreement with the experimentally observed desorption temperature. On the other hand, if the dangling bonds strongly interact, the incorporation is energetically unfavorable even at room temperature because of steric hindrance. An electron trap level caused by a nitrogen vacancy becomes shallow by the hydrogen incorporation. An electron is trapped in a deep level created by a silicon dangling bond before hydrogen incorporation, whereas it is trapped in a shallow level created by an anti-bonding state of a silicon-silicon bond after hydrogen incorporation. The simulation results qualitatively explain the experiment, in which reduced hydrogen content in silicon nitride shows superior charge retention characteristics.},
doi = {10.1063/1.4914163},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22399260}, journal = {Journal of Applied Physics},
issn = {0021-8979},
number = 10,
volume = 117,
place = {United States},
year = {Sat Mar 14 00:00:00 EDT 2015},
month = {Sat Mar 14 00:00:00 EDT 2015}
}