Title :
A novel characterization tool for the study of dielectric breakdown of ultra-thin oxide MOS structures
Author :
Basso, Gilovanni ; Crupi, Felice ; Neri, Bruno ; Giannetti, Romano ; Lombardo, Salvo
Author_Institution :
Pisa Univ., Italy
Abstract :
Dielectric breakdown of ultra-thin oxide MOS structures of integrated circuits is preceded by a precursory stage characterized by random on-off fluctuations of the current tunneling through the oxide. In this paper a new version of a low noise measurement system capable of monitoring these phenomena in a band of 1 kHz is presented. The instrument, controlled by a Personal Computer which stores and elaborates the acquired data, is capable of recognizing the current fluctuations announcing the proximity of the breakdown, so allowing the interruption of the test just a few seconds before the destruction of the sample. Some preliminary observations, made possible by the use of this new analysis tool, are presented in the paper
Keywords :
MIS structures; automatic test equipment; current fluctuations; electric current measurement; integrated circuit testing; semiconductor device breakdown; tunnelling; 1 kHz; characterization tool; current fluctuations; current tunneling; dielectric breakdown; integrated circuits; low noise measurement system; precursor stage; random on-off fluctuations; ultra-thin oxide MOS structures; Dielectric breakdown; Electric breakdown; Fluctuations; Instruments; Low-frequency noise; Microcomputers; Noise measurement; Stress; Testing; Voltage;
Conference_Titel :
Instrumentation and Measurement Technology Conference, 1999. IMTC/99. Proceedings of the 16th IEEE
Conference_Location :
Venice
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-5276-9
DOI :
10.1109/IMTC.1999.776154