Statistics of breakdown field and time-dependent dielectric breakdown in contact-to-poly modules

In this paper, we present the results of voltage-ramp dielectric breakdown and time-dependent dielectric breakdown experiments for contact-polysilicon control gate intra-level dielectric stacks. Lifetime distribution and area scaling are discussed statistically with the analysis of global and local space deviations using the electrical method. Optimized process reliability is evaluated by performing a SRAM lifetime test that measures the early life failure rate.