chapter 1 1 High-k gate dielectrics: why do we need them? -- chapter 2 1 Atomic layer deposition -- chapter 2 2 Chemical vapour deposition -- chapter 2 3 Pulsed laser deposition of dielectrics -- chapter 3 1 Oxygen diffusion -- chapter 3 2 Defects in stacks of Si with nanometre thick high-k dielectric layers: characterization and identification by electron spin resonance -- chapter 3 3 Band alignment at the interfaces of Si and metals with high-permittivity insulating oxides -- chapter 3 4 Electrical characterization, modelling and simulation of MOS structures with high-k gate stacks -- chapter 4 1 Defects and defect-controlled behaviour in high-k materials: a theoretical perspective -- chapter 4 2 Chemical bonding and electronic structure of high-k transition metal dielectrics: applications to interfacial band offset energies and electronically active defects -- chapter 4 3 Electronic structure and band offsets of high-dielectric-constant gate oxides -- chapter 4 4 Reduction of the electron mobility in high-k MOS systems caused by remote scattering with soft interfacial optical phonons -- chapter 4 5 Ab initio calculations of the structural, electronic and dynamical properties of high-k dielectrics -- chapter 4 6 Defect generation under electrical stress: experimental characterization and modelling -- chapter 5 1 Device integration issues -- chapter 5 2 Device architectures for the nano-CMOS era -- chapter 5 3 High-k transistor characteristics.