Trapping of transient processes in aluminium oxide thin films in a voltage pulse experiment

An experimental setup is presented that allows the trapping of transient states in potentiostatic and potentiodynamic experiments. The setup is suitable for electrochemical experiments as well as for dielectric investigations. The system stops an experiment by triggering at a predefined current level after a minimum time of the voltage pulse. The advantage of this device is demonstrated by means of a voltage pulse annealing procedure for a metal-insulator metal (MIM) contact with an anodically prepared aluminium oxide film as insulator. The setup significantly increases the stability against a breakdown of the anodic oxide film. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.