Density functional theory study of effect of NO annealing on electronic structure and carrier-scattering property of 4H-SiC(0001)/SiO$_2$ interface

TL;DR

This study uses density functional theory to analyze how NO annealing affects the electronic structure and carrier scattering at the 4H-SiC/SiO2 interface, highlighting the importance of nitrogen density for device performance.

Contribution

It provides a detailed theoretical analysis of the impact of nitrided layers on the electronic properties of 4H-SiC/SiO2 interfaces, emphasizing the role of nitrogen density.

Findings

Nitrided layer screens Coulomb interaction of O atoms.

Low N atom density causes significant electron scattering.

Increasing N atom density can reduce potential fluctuations.

Abstract

The effect of the nitrided layer introduced by NO annealing on the electronic structure and carrier scattering property of the 4H-SiC(0001)/SiO$_2$ interface is investigated by the density functional theory calculation using the interface models where the areal N atom density corresponds to that in practical devices. The areal N atom density is one third of the areal C atom density in practical devices. It is found that the nitrided layer screens the unfavorable Coulomb interaction of O atoms in the SiO$_2$. However, the electrons flowing under the nitrided layer are significantly scattered by the fluctuation of potential due to the low areal N atom density. These results imply that the areal N atom density should be increased so that the fluctuation of potential is suppressed.