Explanation for the polarity dependence of breakdown in ultrathin silicon dioxide films

The polarity dependence observed for destructive breakdown of ultrathin silicon dioxide films is shown to be directly correlated to the oxide degradation caused by hot-electron-induced defect production. The probability of defect generation is also demonstrated to depend on the Fermi level position at the anode/oxide interface. The specific anode interface, whether substrate/oxide or gate/oxide, is shown to have no direct relationship to the degradation rate. © 1996 American Institute of Physics.