High-Quality Low-Temperature Silicon Oxide by Plasma-Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition Using a Metal–Organic Silicon Precursor and Oxygen Radical

Recently,
$\hbox{SiO}_{2}$
grown at low temperatures has been highlighted for a range of applications. In this letter,
$\hbox{SiO}_{2}$
films were deposited at 280
$^{\circ}\hbox{C}$
by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (ALD) using bis-diethylamino-silane and
$\hbox{O}_{2}$
plasma. The electrical conduction mechanisms of a 38-nm-thick
$\hbox{SiO}_{2}$
film were found to be ohmic and Fowler–Nordheim tunneling in the low- and high-voltage ranges, respectively. The electrical breakdown field of the silicon oxide films was measured at
$\sim$
10 MV/cm. The excellent breakdown field was well explained by the fact that ALD
$ \hbox{SiO}_{2}$
has very low carbon content (
$< $
0.5%) and does not have any oxygen deficiency and nonbridging oxygen. Compared to wet
$\hbox{SiO}_{2}$
, the increase in etch rates was attributed to the existence of strained bonds.