DC conduction properties of oxidised erbium films deposited on Si(1Â 0Â 0) substrates

The dc-electrical conduction of the (Er oxide-silicon) structure was studied at room temperature and temperature range of 295-385 K. Current-voltage J(Vg) and current-temperature J(T) characteristics were analysed, observing that they referred to different current-transfer processes depending on their annealing conditions i.e. on their structure and trap concentration. The current transfer in the oxide film annealed in dry oxygen was governed by the Richardson-Schottky (RS) mechanism while in the oxide film annealed in vacuum was ruled by the trap-charge-limited-space-charge-limited conductivity (TCLC-SCLC) mechanism characterised by exponential distribution of traps. This change of current-transfer mechanism is attributed to the creation of more oxygen vacancies (traps) as a consequence of annealing in vacuum. However, the parameters of the above mechanisms were determined.