On the Influence of Fin Corner Rounding in 3D Nanocrystal Flash Memories

This work presents an original semi-analytical model capable to predict the electrical behavior of nanocrystal (NCs) trigate Fin-FET structures programmed under uniform tunneling (NAND scheme). Experimental data from memory devices with different gate stacks are quantitatively fitted, confirming the efficiency of our model. This model allows for a quantitative understanding of the influence of the FinFET geometrical variations on memory performances. The impact of the fin corner rounding appears to be the most critical feature in such 3D structures.