Enhanced dielectric properties of nitrogen doped epitaxial Gd2O3 thin films on Si

The impact of nitrogen doping on the growth electronic band structure and electrical properties of epitaxial Gd2O3 thin films on Si (111) has been investigated. Epitaxial layers of Gd2O3: N were grown on p-type Si (111) substrates by solid source molecular beam epitaxy technique using molecular N2O as the nitridation agent. Substitutional nitrogen incorporation into the dielectric layer was confirmed by secondary ion mass spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements. Significant reduction of the leakage current density and disappearance of capacitance-voltage hysteresis in the Gd2O3: N layers indicate that nitrogen doping in Gd2O3 successfully eliminates the adverse effects of the oxygen vacancy induced defects in the oxide layer. (C) 2014 WILEY- VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim