Universal framework for temperature dependence prediction of the negative bias temperature instability based on microscope pictures

Abstract

A universal framework for describing the temperature enhanced negative bias temperature instability (NBTI) is developed in this paper. Analytical time evolution models of the NBTI mechanisms, as Pb center generation and hole-transport in the oxygen vacancies, are proposed based on careful investigation of atom-level microscopic pictures. A logarithmic time function is derived to describe the interface state (Pb center) generation and recovery evolution by revealing a fact that the activation energy is significantly modified by the accumulation of generated defects. Corresponding coefficients, including the generation amplitudes and time constant, are identified depending on temperature linearly and exponentially. Moreover, the unrecoverable oxide hole-trapping is proposed resulted from the hole-transport among deep-level oxygen vacancies driven by electrical field within the gate oxide. A power-law time function is derived to describing this evolution, with time exponent linear to temperature. Parameters calculated by the proposed analytical models reveal good consistent with the parameters directly extracted from the measured data, indicating the validation and universality of the physical based framework in reproducing the parametric shift of the NBTI degradation under various temperature conditions and process technologies.