Charging effects on the carrier mobility in silicon-on-insulator wafers covered with a high-k layer

Abstract

The carrier mobility μ in low-doped silicon-on-insulator wafers is found to be strongly modified by the deposition of a thin ZrO2 or SrZrO3 top layer grown by molecular-beam epitaxy. Pseudo-metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect-transistor measurements performed on several samples clearly show a correlation between μ and the density of interface traps (Dit) at the Si/buried-oxide interface. The reduction of Dit by a forming gas anneal leads to a corresponding increase in mobility. Moreover, the high-k/Si interface can contribute to the total drain current via the creation of an inversion channel induced by trapped charges in the high-k layer. Using Hall-effect measurements, we took advantage of this additional current to evaluate the carrier mobility at the high-k/Si interface, without the need of a top gate electrode.