Hydrogen‐Related Defects in Insulators

It is shown that the introduction of hydrogen by a dc H plasma treatment leads to the appearance of negatively charged defects in amorphous Al₂O₃ and SiO₂ and positively charged defects in amorphous HfO₂. The concentration of the defects increases with increasing temperature of the dc H plasma treatment between 50 and 100 °C, and the defects appear in all samples independently on their growth conditions and the thickness of the insulators. The origin of the defects is discussed with an emphasis on the existence of interstitial hydrogen in the insulators.