Metal-insulator-metal capacitor with high capacitance density and low leakage current using ZrTiO4 film

Thin amorphous and orthorhombic ZrTiO4 film with a high-work-function Ni top electrode has been explored in metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors for analog circuit applications. It has been found that even though the permittivity can be as high as 78.9 for orthorhombic ZrTiO4, the extraordinarily high quadratic voltage coefficient of capacitance (VCC), and leakage current make it ineligible for reliable MIM capacitors. On the other hand, amorphous ZrTiO4 demonstrates a high capacitance density of 29.12 fF/mu m(2) and a low VCC of 2341 ppm/V-2. Because of the amorphous phase and the conduction mechanism of Schottky emission, a low leakage current of 1.3 x 10(-7) A/cm(2) at -2 V and a good thermal leakage up to 125 degrees C has also been obtained. Besides these promising characteristics, amorphous ZrTiO4 holds a great potential for high-performance-MIM capacitors not only in its process simplicity but also in the full compatibility with incumbent backend integrated circuit technology. (C) 2009 American Institute of Physics.