Metal-insulator-metal capacitors’ current instability improvement using dielectric stacks to prevent oxygen vacancies formation

Current instability in metal-oxide-semiconductor and metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors has been previously reported to be a potential reliability issue. This letter intends to study a particular way to reduce these current instabilities with time in high-κ MIM capacitors. It consists in the introduction of a stable dielectric layer between the high-κ dielectric and the electrodes in order to prevent oxygen vacancy formation at interfaces. When applied to Ta₂O₅ capacitors, the deposition of a thin layer of Al₂O₃ in the range of a few tens of angstroms enables the strong reduction of current instabilities while maintaining good electrical performances.