Radiation and hot‐electron effects on SiO2/Si interfaces with oxides grown in O2 containing small amounts of trichloroethane

The hardness of SiO2/Si structures grown in O2+TCA (1,1,1,‐trichloroethane) to damages caused by ionizing radiation and hot‐electron injection has been found to depend strongly on the amount of TCA introduced. Using minute amounts (much smaller than conventionally used) of TCA, we have been able to achieve a dramatic improvement of the hardness. When excess amounts of TCA are used, however, the hardness degrades. In addition, the use of TCA also causes a significant change in the gate size dependence of the radiation or hot‐electron‐induced interface traps. These results will be explained in terms of the effects of Cl on the interfacial strain near the SiO2/Si transition region.