Experimental and numerical analysis of the quantum yield [MOSFETs]

In this work it is shown that the quantum yield (QY) measurement cannot be used to extract the energy loss of the electrons responsible for the stress-induced leakage current (SILC). Time-relaxation experiments show that good correlation exists between the QY and the high-energy oxide states, while the SILC and the QY are not correlated. We suggest that the SILC is given by deep levels with a low ionization rate, while the QY is due to a small fraction of carriers tunneling through high-energy states with a high ionization efficiency. The conclusion is supported by numerical simulations.