Abstract
Zirconium titanate (ZrTiO4) thin films (200-260 nm) on p-type (100) Si substrates were prepared using radio-frequency sputter deposition at room temperature in atmosphere of various O2/Ar mixing ratio (from 0/100 to 20/80). All films exhibited a (020) preferred orientation and small grain size with increasing O2/Ar ratio, as shown by x-ray diffraction. The variations of dielectric constant, fixed oxide charge, and interface trapped charge with O2/Ar ratio are studied with an Al/ZrTiO4/Si structure. The refractive index and dielectric constant varied in ranges 2.34-2.26 and 20-16 for the as-deposited films. Within the range investigated, crystallinity appears to have a stronger influence on the densities of charge-trapping centers in the films than oxygen stoichiometry, and the latter may determine the leakage current density. A remarkable two orders of magnitude decrease in leakage current to 5.6×10-9 A/cm 2 at 0.1 MV/cm and an increase in breakdown field beyond 1.2 MV/cm are observed in the film deposited without oxygen after a 400°C annealing in air for 1 h. The current transport in ZrTiO4 film is dominated by the Poole-Frenkel mechanism.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 7103-7108 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Journal of Applied Physics |
Volume | 78 |
Issue number | 12 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 1 Dec 1995 |