Hot-carrier degradation in FinFETs: Modeling, peculiarities, and impact of device topology

Abstract

We perform a comprehensive analysis of hot-carrier degradation (HCD) in FinFETs. To accomplish this goal we employ our physics-based HCD model and validate it against experimental data acquired in n-FinFETs with a channel length of 28 nm. We use this verified model to study the distribution of the trap density across the fin/stack interface. The methodology is applied to analyze the effect of transistor architectural parameters, namely fin length, width, and height, on HCD. Our results show that at the same conditions HCD becomes more severe in shorter devices and in transistors with wider fins, while the impact of the fin height on the damage is weak. Finally we demonstrate that a proper HCD description can be achieved only with a physics-based model.