Comprehensive statistical comparison of RTN and BTI in deeply scaled MOSFETs by means of 3D ‘atomistic’ simulation

We present a thorough statistical investigation of random telegraph noise (RTN) and bias temperature instabilities (BTI) in nanoscale MOSFETs. By means of 3D TCAD `atomistic´ simulations, we evaluate the statistical distribution in capture/emission time constants and in threshold voltage shift (ΔV_T) amplitudes due to single trapped charge, comparing its impact on RTN and BTI. Our analysis shows that, neglecting any impact of charge trapping on trans-characteristic degradation, the individual BTI ΔV_T steps are distributed identically as the RTN ΔV_T steps. However, the individual traps in a device cannot be considered as uncorrelated sources of noise because their mutual interaction is fundamental in determining the dispersion of capture/emission time constants in BTI simulation. These results are of utmost importance for profoundly understanding the differences and similarities in the statistical behavior of RTN and BTI phenomena.