Mechanism of Hf-silicide formation at interface between poly-Si electrode and HfO2∕Si gate stacks studied by photoemission and x-ray absorption spectroscopy

We have investigated the mechanism for silicidation by chemical reactions at polycrystalline-Si (poly-Si)∕HfO2∕Si gate stacks by annealing in ultrahigh vacuum using photoemission spectroscopy and x-ray absorption spectroscopy. Si 2p, Hf 4f, and O 1s high-resolution photoemission spectra have revealed that a Hf-silicide formation starts at as low temperature as 700°C and that a Hf silicate is also formed at the interface between poly-Si electrodes and HfO2. The metallic Hf silicide is formed at the interface between HfO2 and Si substrates, which changes the band offsets on Si substrates. We have found that poly-Si electrodes promote the interfacial reaction between HfO2 and Si substrates, while the crystallization in a HfO2 layer is independent of the silicide formation. The silicidation mechanism based on photoemission spectra is also confirmed from the thermodynamical analysis considering the Gibbs’ free energy.