Dielectric breakdown of ultra-thin oxide MOS structures of integrated circuits is preceded by a precursory stage characterized by random on-off fluctuations of the current tunneling through the oxide. In this paper, a new version of a low noise measurement system capable of monitoring these phenomena in a band of 1 kHz is presented. The instrument, controlled by a Personal Computer which stores and elaborates the acquired data, is capable of recognizing the current fluctuations announcing the proximity of the breakdown, so allowing the interruption of the test just a few seconds before the destruction of the sample. Some preliminary observations, made possible by the use of this new analysis tool, are presented in the paper.
Novel characterization tool for the study of dielectric breakdown of ultra-thin oxide MOS structures
BASSO, GIOVANNI;NERI, BRUNO;
1999-01-01
Abstract
Dielectric breakdown of ultra-thin oxide MOS structures of integrated circuits is preceded by a precursory stage characterized by random on-off fluctuations of the current tunneling through the oxide. In this paper, a new version of a low noise measurement system capable of monitoring these phenomena in a band of 1 kHz is presented. The instrument, controlled by a Personal Computer which stores and elaborates the acquired data, is capable of recognizing the current fluctuations announcing the proximity of the breakdown, so allowing the interruption of the test just a few seconds before the destruction of the sample. Some preliminary observations, made possible by the use of this new analysis tool, are presented in the paper.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.