A field-enhanced Si–Si bond-breakage mechanism is presented which accurately describes the time-dependent dielectric breakdown behavior recently reported for thin-film SiO2 dielectrics over a wide range of fields and temperatures. The breakdown kinetics (both the field and temperature dependence) are shown to be consistent with a field-dependent dipolar energy term associated with an oxygen vacancy which serves to reduce the activation energy required for Si–Si bond breakage.

Topics
Crystallographic defects, Dielectric properties, Thin films, Chemical bonding
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© 1997 American Institute of Physics.
1997
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