Applied Physics Letters · 1999 · 132 citations · 9 references
Natural SciencesMaterials EngineeringMaterials ScienceElectronic MaterialsSemiconductor MaterialsThin FilmsDielectricsDopingOxide SemiconductorsSemiconductor Thin FilmsThin Film Electrical PropertiesThin-film MaterialsBreakdown VoltageCapacitorsDoping In Thin FilmsLanthanide-doped MaterialsMemory CircuitsRare-earth-doped Thin FilmsThin Oxide FilmsThin-film Dielectrics
Addition of Nd, Tb, or Dy to amorphous Ti–O thin films is found to improve the dielectric properties of the films. Specifically, substitution of 10–30 at. % of the dopant for Ti is found to dramatically decrease the leakage current, increase the breakdown voltage, and yet retain the relatively high dielectric constant ε=50–110 in films 35 nm thick. The high-specific-capacitance a-Ti1−yMyOx films thus produced are suitable for incorporation into future Si integrated circuit technology, e.g., for storage capacitors in semiconductor memory circuits.
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