Equivalence between interface traps in SiO2/Si generated by radiation damage and hot-electron injection

We have made a comparison between the interface traps generated in the metal/SiO2/Si structure by x-ray ionizing radiation and Fowler–Nordheim hot-electron injection, and found very strong similarities between the two. More specifically, the qualitative features of the energy distribution of the interface traps, their post-damage time-dependence behavior, and their dependence on the gate bias while being damaged are all very much alike, supporting the notion that the same types of interfacial defects are generated by the two different processes.