For the first time, embedded Si:C (eSi:C) was demonstrated to be a superior nMOSFET stressor compared to SMT or tensile liner (TL) stressors. eSi:C nMOSFET showed higher channel mobility and drive current over our best poly-gate 45nm-node nMOSFET with SMT and tensile liner stressors. In addition, eSi:C showed better scalability than SMT plus tensile liner stressors from 380nm to 190nm poly-pitches.
Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, but it cannot be detected by many analytical techniques. This element is used to improve interface quality and reduce the impact of defects in silicon technology. Knowledge of the amount and distribution of hydrogen is of significant interest for many technologies, such as ZnO and glass manufacturing. Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) can provide analysis for hydrogen and the isotopes deuterium and tritium. Lower instrument vacuum will improve the hydrogen detection limit. Vacuum conditions can be optimized by methods such as overnight pumping of samples and sample holder heating. Adsorption of hydrogen from the vacuum environment during analysis can be minimized with use of high sputtering rate. The species monitored may be atomic or molecular, such as H− or Cs2H+. The latter species provides a practical means for hydrogen profiling in dielectric films in magnetic sector instruments with conventional charge compensation. It is of interest to compare the detection limit that can be obtained for various SIMS instrument configurations under typical operating conditions. Time of flight, magnetic sector, and quadrupole analyzers were used to analyze hydrogen and deuterium ion implanted silicon. The detection limits varied for the different analyzers used and were in the 1018–1019 atoms/cm3 range for hydrogen and as low as 1016 atoms/cm3 for deuterium.
Systematic SIMS analyses with low-energy (250 eV ∼1 keV) oxygen, cesium and krypton primary beams have been carried out on a set of fully strained uniform epitaxial Si 1−x Ge x films (x = 5 ∼ 60%), as well as a germanium ion-implanted silicon standard to investigate the matrix effect under various conditions. It is shown that preferential ion yield enhancement of one matrix component over the other can occur as the result of primary ion incorporation. Through defining a matrix yield factor, this work demonstrated that constant secondary ion yield ratios between Si ion and Ge ion over a large concentration range are only valid under some very specific analysis conditions. Emphases were placed on oxygen beam analyses with regard to steady-state ion yields and surface transients. Both show some unique features only accessible under low-energy conditions.
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