Cation Composition-Dependent Device Performance and Positive Bias Instability of Self-Aligned Oxide Semiconductor...

Amorphous oxide semiconductor transistors control the illuminance of pixels in an ecosystem of displays from large-screen TVs to wearable devices. To satisfy application-specific requirements, oxide semiconductor transistors of various cation compositions have been explored. However, a comprehensive study has not been carried out where the influence of cation composition, oxygen, and hydrogen on device characteristics and stability is systematically quantified, using commercial-grade process technology. In this study, we fabricate self-aligned top-gate structure thin-film transistors with three oxide semiconductor materials, InGaZnO (In/Ga/Zn = 1:1:1), In-rich InGaZnO, and InZnO, having mobility values of 10, 27, and 40 cm²/V·s, respectively. Combinations of varied amounts of oxygen and hydrogen are incorporated into each transistor by controlling the fabrication process to study the effect of these gaseous elements on the physical nature of the channel material. Electrons can be captured by peroxy linkage (O₂^2-) or undercoordinated In (In* to become In⁺), which are manifested in the extracted subgap density-of-states profile and first-principles calculations. Energy difference between electron-trapped In⁺ and O₂^2- σ* is the smallest for IGZO, and In⁺-O₂^2- annihilation occurs by electron excitation from the subgap In⁺ state to the O₂^2- σ*. Furthermore, characteristic time constants during positive bias stress and recovery reveal the various microscopic physical phenomena within the transistor structure between different cation compositions.