Mobility enhancement in strained Si NMOSFETs with HfO₂ gate dielectrics

Mobility enhancement in strained Si NMOSFETs was demonstrated with HfO2 gate dielectrics. The split current-voltage technique was used to measure the gate to inversion channel capacitance. Integration of strained Si and high-K dielectrics provided an improved trade-off between device performance and gate leakage. Strained Si NMOSFETs exhibited 60% higher mobility than unstrained Si device with HfO2 gate dielectrics.