Performance, reliability, radiation effects, and aging issues in microelectronics – From atomic-scale physics to engineering-level modeling

The development of engineering-level models requires adoption of physical mechanisms that underlie observed phenomena. This paper reviews several cases where parameter-free, atomic-scale, quantum mechanical calculations led to the identification of specific physical mechanisms for phenomena relating...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Solid-state electronics 2010-09, Vol.54 (9), p.841-848
Main Authors: Pantelides, Sokrates T., Tsetseris, L., Beck, M.J., Rashkeev, S.N., Hadjisavvas, G., Batyrev, I.G., Tuttle, B.R., Marinopoulos, A.G., Zhou, X.J., Fleetwood, D.M., Schrimpf, R.D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aging
Applied sciences
Bias
Displacement damage
ELDRS
Electronics
Exact sciences and technology
Gates
Hydrogen
Instability
Interfaces
Mathematical models
Microelectronics
Mobilities
MOSFET
NBTI
Niobium base alloys
Radiation effects
Reliability
Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices
Silicon dioxide
Transistors
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Summary:The development of engineering-level models requires adoption of physical mechanisms that underlie observed phenomena. This paper reviews several cases where parameter-free, atomic-scale, quantum mechanical calculations led to the identification of specific physical mechanisms for phenomena relating to performance, reliability, radiation effects, and aging issues in microelectronics. More specifically, we review recent calculations of electron mobilities that are based on atomic-scale models of the Si–SiO 2 interface and elucidate the origin of strain-induced mobility enhancement. We then review extensive work that highlights the role of hydrogen as the primary agent of reliability phenomena such as negative bias temperature instability (NBTI) and radiation effects, such as enhanced low-dose radiation sensitivity (ELDRS) and dopant deactivation. Finally, we review atomic-scale simulations of recoils induced by energetic ions in Si and SiO 2. The latter provide a natural explanation for single-event gate rupture (SEGR) in terms of defects with energy levels in the SiO 2 band gap.
ISSN:0038-1101
1879-2405
DOI:10.1016/j.sse.2010.04.041