As the transistors in microprocessor chips continue to decrease in size, specific materials and design issues must be addressed as outlined in the National Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors. This project addresses the problem of replacing the SiO2 gate dielectric with a high dielectric constant material. This proposed work will use organometallic chemical vapor deposition to deposit HfO2, Al2O3 and HfAlxOy. Various oxygen sources including O2, H2O, and N2O will be used to optimize film properties by minimizing hydrogen and carbon contamination. A remote plasma containing the oxygen precursor and helium will also be used to create reactive oxygen containing species to optimize film properties. Carbon impurity concentration will be correlated to film properties. The proposed work will lead to an increased understanding of remote plasma organometallic chemical vapor deposition and will benefit other developing areas of research. These areas include the manufacture of displays and devices on plastic substrates, optical coatings on low temperature glasses, piezoelectrics for MEMS, and photovoltaic device applications such as antireflection coatings and transparent conductors. The primary objectives of this study are to demonstrate uniform film deposition of HfO2 , Al2O3, and HfAlxOy on Si by remote plasma enhanced OMCVD, and to extensively characterize the films by transmission electron spectroscopy, XPS, C-V measurements, among others.
