Characterization of Atomic Layer Deposition Using X-Ray Reflectrometry

Published

November 13, 2005

Author(s)

Donald A. Windover, N G. Armstrong, James P. Cline, P Y. Hung, A C. Diebold

Abstract

This work addresses current limitations of X-ray reflectometry (XRR) for modeling thin films and provides a basis for their improvement. Better accuracy in the characterization of novel thin film structures requires better model selection techniques and better knowledge of the theorectical limitiations of current XRR analysis techniques. We use hafnium dioxide (HfO2) nanoscale (>>1nm) thin films deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) to study the limitations of current techniques. These structures are of strategic importance as CMOS gate and barrier materials. We show that XRR modeling-for our measured data range and counting statistics-will fail for thickness less than 1 nm. We also show that a 2-layer model (HfO2/SiOxHfy/Si substrate) is more plausible than a 1-layer model (HfO2/Si substrate) for the measured data.

Proceedings Title

Proceedings| 2005

Volume

788

Conference Dates

March 15-18, 2005

Conference Title

International Conference on Characterization and Metrology

Pub Type

Conferences

Keywords

atomic layer deposition, bayesian statistics, hafnium oxide, thin films, x-ray reflectrometry

Citation

Windover, D. , Armstrong, N. , Cline, J. , Hung, P. and Diebold, A. (2005), Characterization of Atomic Layer Deposition Using X-Ray Reflectrometry, Proceedings| 2005 (Accessed January 9, 2026)