Evidence of charging eiiect in silicon nano-crystals using a feedback charge method with metal oxide-semiconductor capacitors

In some new types of non-volatile memory, where silicon nano-crystals (nc-Si) are implemented as a floating gate at a tunnel distance from the channel. the evidence of charging effect in these nc-Si is observed and studied experimentally. We present quasi-static capacitance-voltage (C-V) and current-voltage (I-V) measurements of MOS capacitors containing nc-Si based on a feedback charge method. Doing so we can measure simultaneously and separate the capacitance from leakage and excess currents. Depending on the presence or not of nc-Si in a capacitor, we observe the presence of a maximum of four peaks in the current, of which only one depends on the voltage scan rate. This behaviour is explained in terms of nc-Si dynamic charge and discharge and offset charge influence as well.