Characterization of self-heating effects and assessment of its impact on reliability in finfet technology

The systematically growing power (heat) dissipation in CMOS transistors with each successive technology node is reaching levels which could impact its reliable operation. The emergence of technologies such as bulk/SOI FinFETs has dramatically confined the heat in the device channel due to its vertical geometry and it is expected to further exacerbate with gate-all-around transistors. This work studies heat generation in the channel of semiconductor devices and measures its dissipation by means of wafer level characterization and predictive thermal simulation. The experimental work is based on several existing device thermometry techniques to which additional layout improvements are made in state of the art bulk FinFET and SOI FinFET 14nm technology nodes. The sensors produce excellent matching results which are confirmed through TCAD thermal simulation, differences between sensor types are quantified and error bars on measurements are established. The lateral heat transport measurements determine that heat from the source is mostly dissipated at a distance of 1µm and 1.5µm in bulk FinFET and SOI FinFET, respectively. Heat additivity is successfully confirmed to prove and highlight the fact that the whole system needs to be considered when performing thermal analysis. Furthermore, an investigation is devoted to study self-heating with different layout densities by varying the number of fins and fingers per active region (RX). Fin thermal resistance is measured at different ambient temperatures to show its variation of up to 70% between -40°C to 175°C. Therefore, the Si fin has a more dominant effect in heat transport and its varying thermal conductivity should be taken into account. The effect of ambient temperature on self-heating measurement is confirmed by supplying heat through thermal chuck and adjacent heater devices themselves. Motivation for this work is the continuous evolution of the transistor geometry and use of exotic materials, which in the recent technology nodes made heat removal more challenging. This poses reliability and performance concerns. Therefore, this work studies the impact of self-heating on reliability testing at DC conditions as well as realistic CMOS logic operating (AC) conditions. Front-end-of-line (FEOL) reliability mechanisms, such as hot carrier injection (HCI) and non-uniform time dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB), are studied to show that self-heating effects can impact measurement results and recommendations are given on how to mitigate them. By performing an HCI stress at moderate bias conditions, this dissertation shows that the laborious techniques of heat subtraction are no longer necessary. Self-heating is also studied at more realistic device switching conditions by utilizing ring oscillators with several densities and stage counts to show that self-heating is considerably lower compared to constant voltage stress conditions and degradation is not distinguishable

Characterisation of thermal and coupling effects in advanced silicon MOSFETs

PhD ThesisNew approaches to metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) engineering emerge in order to keep up with the electronics market demands. Two main candidates for the next few generations of Moore’s law are planar ultra-thin body and buried oxide (UTBB) devices and three-dimensional FinFETs. Due to miniature dimensions and new materials with low thermal conductivity, performance of advanced MOSFETs is affected by self-heating and substrate effects. Self-heating results in an increase of the device temperature which causes mobility reduction, compromised reliability and signal delays. The substrate effect is a parasitic source and drain coupling which leads to frequency-dependent analogue behaviour. Both effects manifest themselves in the output conductance variation with frequency and impact analogue as well as digital performance. In this thesis self-heating and substrate effects in FinFETs and UTBB devices are characterised, discussed and compared. The results are used to identify trade-offs in device performance, geometry and thermal properties. Methods how to optimise the device geometry or biasing conditions in order to minimise the parasitic effects are suggested. To identify the most suitable technique for self-heating characterisation in advanced semiconductor devices, different methods of thermal characterisation (time and frequency domain) were experimentally compared and evaluated alongside an analytical model. RF and two different pulsed I-V techniques were initially applied to partially depleted silicon-on-insulator (PDSOI) devices. The pulsed I-V hot chuck method showed good agreement with the RF technique in the PDSOI devices. However, subsequent analysis demonstrated that for more advanced technologies the time domain methods can underestimate self-heating. This is due to the reduction of the thermal time constants into the nanosecond range and limitations of the pulsed I-V set-up. The reduction is related to the major increase of the surface to volume ratio in advanced MOSFETs. Consequently the work showed that the thermal properties of advanced semiconductor devices must be characterised within the frequency domain. For UTBB devices with 7-8 nm Si body and 10 nm ultra-thin buried oxide (BOX) the analogue performance degradation caused by the substrate effects can be stronger than the analogue performance degradation caused by self-heating. However, the substrate effects can be effectively reduced if the substrate doping beneath the buried ii oxide is adjusted using a ground plane. In the MHz – GHz frequency range the intrinsic voltage gain variation is reduced ~6 times when a device is biased in saturation if a ground plane is implemented compared with a device without a ground plane. UTBB devices with 25 nm BOX were compared with UTBB devices with 10 nm BOX. It was found that the buried oxide thinning from 25 nm to 10 nm is not critical from the thermal point of view as other heat evacuation paths (e.g. source and drain) start to play a role. Thermal and substrate effects in FinFETs were also analysed. It was experimentally shown that FinFET thermal properties depend on the device geometry. The thermal resistance of FinFETs strongly varies with the fin width and number of parallel fins, whereas the fin spacing is less critical. The results suggest that there are trade-offs between thermal properties and integration density, electrostatic control and design complexity, since these aspects depend on device geometry. The high frequency substrate effects were found to be effectively reduced in devices with sub-100 nm wide fins.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and EU fundin

Miniaturized Transistors, Volume II

In this book, we aim to address the ever-advancing progress in microelectronic device scaling. Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) devices continue to endure miniaturization, irrespective of the seeming physical limitations, helped by advancing fabrication techniques. We observe that miniaturization does not always refer to the latest technology node for digital transistors. Rather, by applying novel materials and device geometries, a significant reduction in the size of microelectronic devices for a broad set of applications can be achieved. The achievements made in the scaling of devices for applications beyond digital logic (e.g., high power, optoelectronics, and sensors) are taking the forefront in microelectronic miniaturization. Furthermore, all these achievements are assisted by improvements in the simulation and modeling of the involved materials and device structures. In particular, process and device technology computer-aided design (TCAD) has become indispensable in the design cycle of novel devices and technologies. It is our sincere hope that the results provided in this Special Issue prove useful to scientists and engineers who find themselves at the forefront of this rapidly evolving and broadening field. Now, more than ever, it is essential to look for solutions to find the next disrupting technologies which will allow for transistor miniaturization well beyond silicon’s physical limits and the current state-of-the-art. This requires a broad attack, including studies of novel and innovative designs as well as emerging materials which are becoming more application-specific than ever before

III-V and 2D Devices: from MOSFETs to Steep-Slope Transistors

With silicon CMOS technology approaching the scaling limit, alternating channel materials and novel device structures have been extensively studied and attracted a lot of attention in solid-state device research. In this dissertation, solid-state electron devices for post-Si CMOS applications are explored including both new materials such as III-V and 2D materials and new device structures such as tunneling field-effect transistors and negative capacitance field-effect transistors. Multiple critical challenges in applying such new materials and new device structures are addressed and the key achievements in this dissertation are summarized as follows: 1) Development of fabrication process technology for ultra-scaled planar and 3D InGaAs MOSFETs. 2) Interface passivation by forming gas anneal on InGaAs gate-all-around MOSFETs. 3) Characterization methods for ultra-scaled MOSFETs, including a correction to subthreshold method and low frequency noise characterization in short channel devices. 4) Development of short channel InGaAs planar and 3D gate-allaround tunneling field-effect transistors. 5) Negative capacitance field-effect transistors with hysteresis-free and bi-directional sub-thermionic subthreshold slope and the integration with various channel materials such as InGaAs and MoS2

Strain-Engineered MOSFETs

This book brings together new developments in the area of strain-engineered MOSFETs using high-mibility substrates such as SIGe, strained-Si, germanium-on-insulator and III-V semiconductors into a single text which will cover the materials aspects, principles, and design of advanced devices, their fabrication and applications. The book presents a full TCAD methodology for strain-engineering in Si CMOS technology involving data flow from process simulation to systematic process variability simulation and generation of SPICE process compact models for manufacturing for yield optimization

Benchmarking of FinFET, Nanosheet, and Nanowire FET Architectures for Future Technology Nodes

Nanosheet (NS) and nanowire (NW) FET architectures scaled to a gate length ( LG ) of 16 nm and below are benchmarked against equivalent FinFETs. The device performance is predicted using a 3D finite element drift-diffusion/Monte Carlo simulation toolbox with integrated 2D Schrödinger equation based quantum corrections. The NS FET is a viable replacement for the FinFET in high performance (HP) applications when scaled down to LG of 16 nm offering a larger on-current ( ION ) and slightly better sub-threshold characteristics. Below LG of 16 nm, the NW FET becomes the most promising architecture offering an almost ideal sub-threshold swing, the smallest off-current ( IOFF ), and the largest ION/IOFF ratio out of the three architectures. However, the NW FET suffers from early ION saturation with the increasing gate bias that can be tackled by minimizing interface roughness and/or by optimisation of a doping profile in the device body

Benchmarking of FinFET, Nanosheet, and Nanowire FET Architectures for Future Technology Nodes

Nanosheet (NS) and nanowire (NW) FET architectures scaled to a gate length (L G ) of 16 nm and below are benchmarked against equivalent FinFETs. The device performance is predicted using a 3D finite element drift-diffusion/Monte Carlo simulation toolbox with integrated 2D Schrödinger equation based quantum corrections. The NS FET is a viable replacement for the FinFET in high performance (HP) applications when scaled down to L G of 16 nm offering a larger on-current (I ON ) and slightly better sub-threshold characteristics. Below L G of 16 nm, the NW FET becomes the most promising architecture offering an almost ideal sub-threshold swing, the smallest off-current (I OFF ), and the largest I ON /I OFF ratio out of the three architectures. However, the NW FET suffers from early ION saturation with the increasing gate bias that can be tackled by minimizing interface roughness and/or by optimisation of a doping profile in the device bodyThis work was supported in part by the Spanish Government under Project TIN2013-41129-P and Project TIN2016-76373-P, in part by the Xunta de Galicia and FEDER Funds under Grant GRC 2014/008, and in part by the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria (accreditation 2016–2019) under Grant ED431G/08. The work of Guillermo Indalecio was supported by the Programa de Axudas á Etapa Posdoutoral da Xunta de Galicia under Grant 2017/077. The work of Natalia Seoane was supported by the RyC Programme of the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades under Grant RYC-2017-23312S

핀펫 소자에서의 핫캐리어 신뢰성 분석

학위논문 (박사) -- 서울대학교 대학원 : 공과대학 전기·정보공학부, 2021. 2. 신형철.CMOS 로직 소자는 퍼포먼스를 향상시키기 위해 지속적으로 축소화 되고 있다. 하지만 구조 파라미터들의 축소화에 비해 동작 전압은 충분히 감소하지 않는다. 따라서 소자 내 수직 전계나 온도가 증가하는 추세이기 때문에 신뢰성은 계속해서 문제가 되고 있다. 최근 3D 소자의 신뢰성에 대한 연구는 많이 진행되고 있지만 empirical 모델링과 관련된 연구가 대부분이다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 실제 측정을 기반으로 시뮬레이션을 이용하여 물리적 이론 중심으로 로직 소자의 핫캐리어 신뢰성을 분석하였다. 먼저 핫캐리어 모델의 정확성을 향상시키기 위해서 TCAD 시뮬레이션에 electron-electron scattering을 적용하였다. 추가적으로 3D FinFET의 측정 데이터와 calibration을 진행하여 모델의 정합성을 확인하였다. calibration 과정에서는 모든 scattering 메커니즘을 고려하기 위해 다양한 전압과 온도 조건이 필요하다. 따라서 다양한 전압 조건에 따른 HCD를 분석하고, calibration을 진행하여 HCD 모델의 파라미터를 추출하였다. 다음으로 전압 조건에 따른 HCD의 온도 경향성을 분석하였다. oxide trap과 달리 interface trap은 전압 조건에 따라 다른 온도 경향성을 보인다. 따라서 interface trap을 3가지 성분으로 분리하여 각 성분의 온도 경향성을 분석하였다. Multiple particle process(MP)과 field enhanced thermal degradation process(FP)는 전압 조건과 상관없이 일정한 온도 경향성을 가진다. 반면 Single particle process(SP)는 scattering의 영향을 받기 때문에 온도 경향성은 전압 조건에 따라 달라진다. 온도 경향성 분석 과정에서도 calibration을 진행하며 여러 번의 iteration을 통해 다양한 전압 및 온도가 고려된 파라미터를 추출한다. 추출된 파라미터를 적용한 시뮬레이션 모델은 기존의 모델보다 더 정확하게 HCD 측정 결과를 예측하였다. 결과적으로 물리적 이론에 근거하여 시뮬레이션 모델 구축함으로써 HCD 분석의 정확성을 향상시켰다. 하지만 가속 조건과 동작 조건의 self-heating 효과가 다르기 때문에 소자가 실제 CMOS 회로의 동작 조건에서 interface trap을 발생시키는 메커니즘은 다를 수 있다. 따라서 우리는 동작 영역에서의 각 성분의 비율까지 예측하였다. 마지막으로 우리는 10 nm node 소자에서 nFinFET에 비해 pFinFET에서 높은 열화가 발생하는 원인에 대해 분석하였다. pFinFET은 소스/드레인 물질로 SiGe를 사용하기 때문에 nFinFET에 비해 self-heating 효과가 심하여 소자 온도가 도 높다. 이론적으로 MP 메커니즘의 lifetime은 온도가 증가할수록 감소하기 때문에 MP에 의한 열화 또한 감소한다. 따라서 소자 온도가 더 높은 pFinFET에서 nFinFET에 비해 더 많은 MP가 발생하기 어렵다. 하지만 nFinFET 과 달리 pFinFET에서는 Si-H bond의 electron과 hole이 반응하여 interface trap을 생성시키는 RD 가 발생할 수 있다. 또한 RD는 온도가 높을수록 더 많은 열화가 발생하기 때문에, pFinFET에서 nFinFET보다 더 많은 열화가 발생하는 현상을 설명할 수 있다. 따라서 우리는 HCD 조건이지만 소자 온도가 높은 pFinFET에서 추가적인 RD 메커니즘이 발생할 수 있다고 제안한다. 다양한 전압 조건에서의 전류 열화율을 통해 주요 열화 메커니즘을 분석하였으며 pFinFET에서는 RD가 주요함을 확인하였다. 또한 TCAD 시뮬레이션을 이용하여 HCD 조건에서 발생할 수 있는 RD를 예측하였다. 그 결과 RD를 제외한 순수 hot carrier 성분은 pFinFET보다 nFinFET에서 더 많이 발생한다.CMOS logic devices have been scaled down to improve performance. However, the operating voltage is not sufficiently reduced compared to the scale down in physical dimensions. Therefore, since the electric field and temperature of the device gradually increase, reliability is still a critical issue in logic devices. Recently, many studies on the reliability of 3D devices are being conducted, but most of the studies are related to empirical modeling. Therefore, in this study, based on the actual measurement results, the hot carrier degradation(HCD) reliability of the logic device was analyzed focusing on the physical theory using Technology computer-aided design (TCAD) simulation. First, electron-electron scattering(EES) was applied to the TCAD simulation to improve the accuracy of the hot carrier model. Additionally, calibration between the measurement data of 14 nm node FinFET and the model was performed to confirm the consistency. The calibration process required various voltage and temperature conditions to account for all scattering mechanisms. Therefore, HCD was analyzed according to various voltage conditions, and the parameters of the HCD model were extracted by calibration process. Next, temperature dependence under various HCD conditions was analyzed. Unlike oxide traps, interface traps show different temperature dependence depending on HCD voltage conditions. Therefore, the interface traps were separated into three components and the temperature dependence was analyzed for each component. Multiple particle process (MP) and Field enhanced thermal degradation process (FP) have a constant temperature dependence regardless of voltage conditions. On the other hand, the temperature dependence of Single particle process (SP) varies depending on the voltage condition because SP is affected by scattering. In the process of temperature dependence analysis, calibration is also performed and parameters considering various voltages and temperatures were extracted through several iterations. The improved model to which the extracted parameters were applied showed more precise prediction of degradation compared to that of the previous model. As a results, accuracy of the HCD analysis was improved by establishing the HCD simulation framework based on physical theories. However, since the self-heating effect of the acceleration condition and the operation condition are different, the HCD mechanism that occurs in the actual CMOS circuit may also be different. Therefore, we predicted the ratio of each component under operating condition. Finally, in 10 nm node devices, we analyzed the cause of higher HCD in pFinFETs than in nFinFETs. Self-heating effect is severe in pFinFETs because SiGe is used as the source/drain material which makes the device temperature higher than nFinFETs. Theoretically, because the lifetime of multiple particle(MP) mechanism decreases as temperature increases, degradation due to MP decreases. Therefore, it is difficult for the HCD mechanisms to occur more in pFinFETs which has higher temperature than nFinFETs. However, in pFinFETs unlike nFinFETs, reaction-diffusion (RD) mechanism can occur in which holes react with the electrons of Si-H bonds to generate interface traps. Also, since RD deteriorates more as the temperature increases, the phenomenon that more degradation occurs in pFinFET than nFinFET can be explained by the RD mechanism. Therefore, we propose an additional RD mechanism that is caused by high device temperature in pFinFETs even in HCD condition. Main components were investigated through measurements of current degradation rate in various voltage conditions, and it was found that RD is dominant in pFinFETs. Also, RD that can occur in HCD condition was predicted through TCAD simulation. As a results, degradation due to pure hot carriers without RD occurs more in nFinFETs than in pFinFETs.Abstract i Chapter 1. Introduction 1 Chapter 2. Hot Carrier Degradation Model 4 2.1. Physical theory 4 2.2. TCAD simulation 8 2.3. Calibration process 14 2.4. Summary 22 Chapter 3. Analysis on Temperature Dependence of HCD 25 3.1. Introduction 25 3.2. Temperature dependence according to acceleration conditions 26 3.3. Calibration process 30 3.4. Mechanism separation 33 3.5. HCD prediction in the nominal voltage 35 3.6. Summary 36 Chapter 4. Comparative Analysis of HCD in nMOS/pMOS FinFET 39 4.1. Introduction 39 4.2. Comparison of HCD in the long/short channel FinFET 40 4.3. Self-heating effect in n/pFinFET 44 4.4. Bias Temperature Instability(BTI) in n/pFinFET 47 4.5. Summary 59 Chapter 5. Conclusion 64 Abstract in Korean 66 List of Publications 69Docto