Scaling of Hafnium-Based High-k Dielectrics

In this paper, various approaches to extend scalability of Hafnium-based dielectrics are reported. Among the three crystal phases of HfO 2 (monoclinic, cubic and tetragonal), the tetragonal phase has been reported to have the highest dielectric constant. Tetragonal phase stabilization by crystallizing the thin HfO 2 using a metal capping layer and by adding zirconium is demonstrated. The microstructure, morphology, optical properties and impurities of Hf x Zr 1-x O 2 dielectrics (for 0更多