Effect of hydrogenation of the leakage currents of laser-annealed polysilicon TFTs

The effect of hydrogenation on the leakage currents of laser-annealed polysilicon thin-film transistors (TFTs) was investigated for a low-temperature (<600°C) process. Before hydrogenation the laser-annealed TFTs gave larger leakage currents than those without laser annealing. After hydrogenation, however, the leakage currents decreased significantly to values less than those without laser annealing. Two groups of energy levels with different capture/emission cross sections are suggested to account for the leakage current behavior