Characterization and modeling of the tunneling current in Si–SiO2–Si structures with ultra-thin oxide layer

Abstract An extensive characterization of the tunneling current in Si–SiO 2 –Si structures with ultra-thin oxide is presented for a large variety of experimental conditions including injection of electrons and holes from both accumulation and inversion layers and different cathode/anode polarities. Experimental data are analyzed with the help of a detailed numerical model featuring quantization effects and different tunneling mechanisms. It is shown that, in ultra-thin oxides, many tunneling components are significant, that a trap-assisted component can be detected even in virgin oxides, and that simple voltage/field considerations cannot be used to quantitatively assess the tunneling current since a detailed quantum mechanical modeling of the whole device structure is needed.

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