High-k gate dielectrics with ultra-low leakage current based on praseodymium oxide

We show that crystalline praseodymium oxide films of the Pr/sub 2/O/sub 3/-type grown on Si(100) have outstanding dielectric properties, displaying a dielectric constant of 31 independent of substrate doping, ultra-low leakage current density of 5/spl times/10/sup -9/ A/cm/sup 2/ at V/sub g/=/spl plusmn/1.0 V @ EOT=14 /spl Aring/, good reliability, and reversible electrical breakdown. Thin Pr/sub 2/O/sub 3/ layers survive anneals of up to 1000/spl deg/C for 15 seconds with no degradation in electrical properties.