Physical and chemical characterization of combinatorial metal gate electrode Ta-C-N library film

This paper reports comprehensive structural and chemical analyses for the combinatorial Ta-C-N/HfO2 system, crucial data for understanding the electrical properties of Ta-C-N/HfO2. Combinatorial Ta-C-N library (composition spread) films were deposited by magnetron sputtering. Electron probe wavelength dispersive spectroscopy and x-ray fluorescence-yield near-edge spectroscopy were used to quantitatively determine the composition across these films. Scanning x-ray microdiffractometry determined that a solid solution of Ta(C,N)(x) forms and extends to compositions (0.3 <= Ta <= 0.5 and 0.57 <= Ta <= 0.67) that were previously unknown. The thermal stability of the Ta-C-N/HfO2 library was studied using high resolution transmission electron microscopy, which shows Ta-C-N/HfO2/SiO2/Si exhibiting good thermal stability up to 950 degrees C. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3428788]