Electron spin resonance study of metal-nitride-silicon structures: Observation of Si dangling bonds with different configurations and trapping properties in silicon nitride

Abstract

Electron spin resonance (ESR) experiments on large area metal-nitride-crystalline silicon (MNS) structures show that the occupation of silicon dangling bonds in silicon nitride can be modulated under the application of a gate bias. The technique applied simultaneously with capacitance-voltage ( CV) measurements has been used for the identification of specific electronic transitions. In the case of Si-rich silicon nitride, we demonstrate that the ESR line consists of an inhomogeneous distribution of discrete components at different g-values. Trapping of holes observed under negative bias occurs at a site with a g-value of 2.0052, corresponding to a pure Si environment, while electron trapping observed under positive bias occurs at a site with a g-value of 2.0028, corresponding to a pure N environment. The selectivity of the transitions with respect to the bias leads us to attribute different energy levels to each Si dangling bond configuration.