Radiation damage in proton-irradiated strained Si n-MOSFETs

Strained Si layers (sSi) on strain-relaxed SiGe buffer layers are frequently used in order to boost up the carrier mobility. This study investigates the degradation of such sSi n-MOSFETs by 20-MeV proton irradiation. The drain current decreases and a negative shift of the threshold voltage is observed after proton irradiation. The impact of the fabrication process of sSi transistors on the degradation is also discussed.