THE FAST INITIAL THRESHOLD VOLTAGE SHIFT: NBTI OR HIGH-FIELD STRESS

Published

April 27, 2008

Author(s)

Jason P. Campbell, Kin P. Cheung, John S. Suehle

Abstract

Recent 'NBTI' studies have come to involve very high electric fields, yet these same studies are used to criticize the lower field 'NBTI' models. This study examines both high- and low-field degradation phenomena by monitoring the initial threshold voltage shift (VTH) as a function of stress time and stress voltage. We demonstrate that the initial VTH is recoverable and decays rapidly as the stress voltage is reduced. We also monitor the transient transconductance (GM) degradation which surprisingly indicates the presence of an electron trapping/de-trapping component. We argue that the initial VTH and GM degradation behaviors are consistent with high-field stress degradation. The electron trapping component of the 'recoverable' degradation is unexpected and must be addressed to insure accurate NBTI lifetime predictions.

Proceedings Title

IEEE International Reliability Physics Symposium Proceedings

Conference Dates

April 27-May 1, 2008

Conference Location

Phoenix, AZ

Conference Title

International Reliability Physics Symposium

Pub Type

Conferences

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Keywords

NBTI, High-Field Stress, hole-trapping, electron-trapping

Citation

Campbell, J. , Cheung, K. and Suehle, J. (2008), THE FAST INITIAL THRESHOLD VOLTAGE SHIFT: NBTI OR HIGH-FIELD STRESS, IEEE International Reliability Physics Symposium Proceedings, Phoenix, AZ, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=32954 (Accessed October 2, 2025)