Low-temperature oxidation of 4H-SiC using oxidation catalyst SrTi_1-xMgxO_3-δ

A thermal oxidation method with SrTi_1-xMgxO_3-δ used as an oxidation catalyst is proposed to oxidize the 4H-SiC surface at low temperatures. The rate constant for the interfacial reaction of the 4H-SiC(0001) Si-face at 800 C is enhanced by approximately two orders of magnitude from that of conventional dry oxidation. The method enables the production of a gate SiO₂ layer of a MOSFET at temperatures below 900 C. Electrical characterization of the MOS interface suggests that the catalytic oxidation produces similar interface state densities to those produced by conventional dry oxidation in the energy range of 0.2-0.5 eV from the conduction band edge at 1300 C.