Characterization of ultrathin plasma nitrided gate dielectrics in pMOSFET for 0.18 /spl mu/m technology and beyond

The impact of nitrogen plasma nitridation on the interfacial quality of ultrathin oxide (1.8 nm and 2.6 nm) and negative bias temperature instability (NBTI) have been investigated. It is found that the plasma-nitridation can more effectively suppress nitrogen-induced and boron-induced hole mobility degradation than that of thermal nitridation. Therefore, a higher amount of nitrogen can be incorporated into the plasma-nitrided oxide to suppress boron penetration without compromising the oxide interfacial quality. Furthermore, plasma-nitrided oxides have higher resistance to NBTI and longer NBTI-lifetime than that of thermal-nitrided oxides.