The effect of the channel interface of top-gate InGaZnO (IGZO) thin film transistors (TFTs) on the electrical properties caused by exposure to various wet chemicals such as deionized water, photoresist (PR), and strippers during the photolithography process was studied. Contrary to the good electrical characteristics of TFTs including a protective layer (PL) to avoid interface damage by wet chemical processes, TFTs without PL showed a conductive behavior with a negative threshold voltage shift, in which the ratio of Ga and Zn on the IGZO top surface reduced due to exposure to a stripper. In addition, the wet process in photolithography increased oxygen vacancy and oxygen impurity on the IGZO surface. The photo-patterning process increased donor-like defects in IGZO due to organic contamination on the IGZO surface by PR, making the TFT characteristics more conductive. The introduction of ozone (O3) annealing after photo-patterning and stripping of IGZO reduced the increased defect states on the surface of IGZO due to the wet process and effectively eliminated organic contamination by PR. In particular, by controlling surface oxygens on top of the IGZO surface excessively generated with O3 annealing using UV irradiation of 185 and 254 nm, IGZO TFTs with excellent current-voltage characteristics and reliability could be realized comparable to IGZO TFTs containing PL.
Keywords: InGaZnO (IGZO); UV treatment; ozone annealing; stripper damage; top-gate thin-film transistors.