Observation of Extreme-Ultraviolet-Irradiation-Induced Damages on High-Dielectric-Constant Dielectrics

Abstract

Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) irradiation may induce damages on high-dielectric-constant (high-k) dielectrics. In this letter, the EUV-irradiation-induced damages on HfSiO, HfAlO, and Al 2 O 3 are investigated. After EUV irradiation, hole traps, border traps, and interface traps are all increased. All of the three high-k dielectrics exhibit poorer immunity to the EUV irradiation than SiO(2). The oxide traps scale down with the dielectric thickness. Interfacial layer plays an important role in the increase of border traps and interface traps. Therefore, high-quality SiO-like interfacial layer is critical for radiation-hard devices.