A study of EEPROM endurance correlation with wafer level reliability data

The results of a study of EEPROM endurance correlation with various wafer level reliability tests are presented. Samples from multiple wafer lots of various EEPROM array sizes were cycled, and the data were compared to wafer level data taken from the same wafer lots. The results show that TDDB studies alone do not correlate well with endurance. Other data, such as yield studies and alignment measurements, also do not completely correlate with endurance. Despite this we believe that the wafer level tests such as TDDB being performed now are good indicators of overall oxide quality.