1/f noise in polycrystalline silicon thin films

In this paper, an approach is presented to explain 1/f noise in polycrystalline silicon thin films. This approach is based on the finding that the grain boundary has a leading part in the generation of noise. In this context, lif noise is explained as a thermal noise due to dielectric losses in the grain boundaries, and modeled using physical parameters linked with the quality of the material at the grain boundary. Experimental results on highly boron-doped polysilicon resistors are presented. In order to support the thermal origin of 1/f noise in our samples, results on another simple device that generates 1/f noise are presented. [S0163-1829(98)04519-6].