Direct and post-injection oxide and interface trap generation resulting from low-temperature hot-electron injection

We have studied direct and post-injection trap generation, induced by low-temperature (∼77 K) hot-electron injection. At these temperatures the main degradation mechanism, attributed to the release, migration, and subsequent reaction of a hydrogenic species is inoperative, not only due to the suppressed release but also to the freeze-out of the species motion. As a result, trap creation is strongly reduced as compared to room-temperature injection. Additional interface traps are created during warmup following low-temperature injection. Two post-injection generation processes have been observed: a low-temperature (120 K), bias-independent process believed to be related to the migration of neutral atomic hydrogen released during stress, and a high-temperature (250 K), negative-bias enhanced process that apparently cannot be attributed to the migration of a species, but rather resembles the negative-bias-temperature instability phenomenon.