A multi-energy level agnostic simulation approach to defect generation

• Published in: Solid-state electronics Vol. 184; p. 108056
• Main Authors: Vici, Andrea, Degraeve, Robin, Kaczer, Ben, Franco, Jacopo, Van Beek, Simon, De Wolf, Ingrid
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01-10-2021
• Subjects: Defects; MC simulations; Power-law; TDDB; TDDB; Power-law; MC simulations; Defects
• ISSN: 0038-1101; 1879-2405
• DOI: 10.1016/j.sse.2021.108056

•Multi-energy level agnostic approach describes defects generation during time-dependent dielectric breakdown.•Defect generation is both fluence and energy-carrier-driven.•Considering the bond strength distribution, the accepted power-law trend for defect generation is naturally obtained by Monte Carlo simulations.•Low-frequency AC time to-breakdown increased compared to DC.
Defect generation during time-dependent dielectric breakdown stress is investigated by a multi-energy level agnostic model. Monte Carlo simulations show that the characteristic power-law increase of the generated defects with stress time is readily obtained when considering distributed bond strengths. DC and AC unipolar simulations show the proportionality between the time-to-breakdown and the fluence and energy of the injected carriers. These results are consistent with the experimental observations of a fluence and energy-driven process in thin oxides.