Transport mechanisms of electrons and holes in dielectric films

Electron and hole transport mechanisms in amorphous silicon oxide, silicon nitride, and aluminum oxide, dielectric materials of high relevance to silicon device technology, are reviewed. It is established that the widely accepted Frenkel model provides a formal description of transport in trap-containing insulators, but nonphysical model parameters must be introduced in order to obtain quantitative agreement. It is shown that the multiphonon model of trap ionization consistently describes charge transport in insulators with traps.