PrOAlN dielectrics for metal insulator semiconductor stacks

Abstract This work focuses on praseodymium oxide films as a high‐k material on silicon and silicon carbide (SiC) in metal insulator semiconductor samples. The electrical results are correlated to spectroscopic findings on this material system. Strong interfacial reactions between the praseodymium oxide and the semiconductor as well as silicon inter‐diffusion into the high‐k material are observed. The importance of a buffer layer is discussed and its optimisation is addressed, too. In particular the improvement of the performance by the introduction of an aluminium oxynitride buffer layer, which acts as an inter‐diffusion barrier and reduces the leakage current, the interface state density and the equivalent oxide thickness is demonstrated.