Silicon out-diffusion and aluminum in-diffusion in devices with atomic-layer deposited La₂O₃ thin films

The use of aluminum as an electrode in metal-insulator-semiconductor devices containing lanthanum oxide is impaired by unacceptable leakage current levels. Time of flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy depth profiling shows a significant amount of silicon out-diffusion from the substrate and aluminum in-diffusion towards the oxide. By using titanium nitride as the electrode, the silicon out-diffusion is suppressed, which improves the device performance. This indicates that, despite the larger coordination number of the lanthanum ions in the oxide, aluminum acts as a sink for silicon, thus driving the out-diffusion of silicon.