Charge Loss Characteristics of Different Al Contents in a HfA10 Trapping Layer Investigated by Variable Temperature Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy

Kelvin probe force microscopy （KFM） technology is applied to investigate the charge storage and loss characteristics of the HfAlO charge trapping layer with various AI contents. The experimental results demonstrate that with the increase of AI contents in the HfAIO trapping layer, trap density significantly increases. Improvement of data retention characteristic is also observed. Comparing the vertical charge loss and lateral charge spreading of the HfAIO trapping layers, the former plays a major role in the charge loss mechanism. Variable temperature KFM measurement results show that the extracted effective electron trap energy level increases with increasing AI contents in HfAIO trapping layer, which is in accordance with the charge loss characteristics.