Characteristics of bottom-gate low temperature nanocrystalline silicon thin film transistor fabricated by hydrogen annealing of gate dielectric layer

• Published in: Thin solid films Vol. 518; no. 22; pp. 6311 - 6314
• Main Authors: Lee, Youn-Jin, Lee, Kyoung-Min, Hong, Wan-Shick
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01.09.2010; Elsevier
• Subjects: Annealing; Applied sciences; Catalytic-CVD; Chemical vapor deposition (including plasma-enhanced cvd, mocvd, etc.); Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Deposition; Dielectric thin films; Dielectrics; Dielectrics, piezoelectrics, and ferroelectrics and their properties; Electronics; Exact sciences and technology; Flexible display; Gates; Low temperature; Materials science; Methods of deposition of films and coatings; film growth and epitaxy; Nanocrystalline silicon TFTs; Nanocrystals; Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization; Other topics in nanoscale materials and structures; Physics; Semiconductor devices; Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices; Silicon; Thin film transistors; Thin films; Transistors; Nanocrystalline silicon TFTs; Flexible display; Catalytic-CVD; Low temperature; Hot filament chemical vapor deposition; Annealing; Epitaxial reactor; Silicon nitride; Active layer; Nanostructures; Thin film transistors; CV characteristic; Thin films; Breakdown voltage; Gallium tellurides; Dielectric thin films; Silicon; Gates; Hysteresis; Nanocrystal
• ISSN: 0040-6090; 1879-2731
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tsf.2010.03.057

Thin film transistors having nanocrystalline silicon as an active layer were fabricated by catalytic-CVD at a low process temperature (≤ 200 °C). The tri-layer of the bottom-gate TFT was deposited continuously inside the Cat-CVD reactor. In order to improve the quality of the gate dielectric layer an in-situ hydrogen annealing step was introduced in between the silicon nitride and the nanocrystalline silicon deposition steps. The in-situ hydrogen annealing was effective in reducing the hysteresis in the C–V characteristics and in enhancing the breakdown voltage by decreasing the defects inside the SiN x film.