Properties of zirconia thin films prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering

The search for alternative dielectric materials with high dielectric constant, thermodynamic stable on silicon substrate and low direct tunneling current leads to oxide based materials like zirconia. Zirconia thin films were prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering. The capacitance voltage, ac and dc electrical characteristics were investigated and the values like fixed oxide charges were calculated and compared among the samples with and without annealing. Films annealed at 700 °C showed a dielectric constant ∼ 26 with interface trap densities of 1.629 × 1012 eV− 1 cm− 2.