Indium out-diffusion in Al2O3/InGaAs stacks during anneal at different ambient conditions

Indium out-diffusion during anneal enhances leakage currents in metal/dielectric/InGaAs gate stacks. In this work, we study the influence of ambient conditions during anneal on indium out-diffusion in Al2O3/InGaAs structures, prior to the gate metal deposition. Using X-ray photoemission spectroscopy and time of flight secondary ions mass spectrometry, we observed much lower indium concentrations in the Al2O3 layer following vacuum and O2 anneals compared to forming gas or nitrogen anneals. The electrical characteristics of the Ni/Al2O3/InGaAs gate stack following these pre-metallization anneals as well as after subsequent post metallization anneals are presented. Possible explanations for the role of the annealing ambient conditions on indium out-diffusion are presented.