Breakdown kinetics of Pr2O3 films by conductive-atomic force microscopy

The dielectric breakdown (BD) kinetics of praseodymium thin films has been determined by comparison between current-voltage measurements on large-area (up to 78.54 mu m(2)) metal-oxide-semiconductor structures and conductive-atomic force microscopy (C-AFM). C-AFM clearly images the weak BD single spots under constant voltage stresses. The stress time on the single C-AFM tip dot was varied from 2.5x10(-3) to 8x10(-2) s. The density of BD spots, upon increasing the stress time, exhibits an exponential trend. The Weibull slope and the characteristic time of the dielectric BD have been determined by direct measurements at nanometer scale.