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Nanometric Structure-Property Relationship In Hafnium Oxide Thin Films Made By Sputter-Deposition, Mirella Vargas

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Hafnium oxide (HfO2) is technologically an important material, which exhibits a unique set of properties such as a high dielectric constant (k~25) and wide band gap (~5.7 eV) which make this material attractive in the fields of microelectronics and optoelectronics. HfO2 has become the leading candidate to replace SiO2 dielectrics in gate oxides due to a higher permittivity and reportedly lower electron tunneling effects. HfO2 exhibits various polymorphs; the thermodynamic stability and phase existence depends on the temperature and pressure conditions. In addition, the controlled growth and manipulation of specific HfO2 crystal structures at the nanoscale dimensions is the driving …