Study of the multiple-negative-differential-resistance (MNDR) switching behaviors based on heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) structures

In this paper, we demonstrate multiple-negative-differential-resistance (MNDR) switching behaviors based on the InGaP/GaAs heterostructure-emitter bipolar transistor (HEBT) and InGaAlAs/InP heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) structures. The devices act like conventional HBTs under forward operation mode. The proposed HEBTs show lower offset voltage due to the correct design of the emitter thickness. On the other hand, MNDR phenomena resulting from avalanche multiplication, confinement effects and the potential redistribution process are observed under inverted operation mode for both devices. In addition, three-terminal NDR characteristics are investigated under the applied base currentI_B . Moreover, for the InGaAlAs/InP HBT, anomalous multiple-route and multiple-step current–voltage (I–V) characteristics at 77 K are observed due to the insertion of a InGaAs quantum well (QW) between the base and collector layers.     

Simulation of a spintronic transistor: A study of its performance

We study theoretically the magnetic bipolar transistor, and compare its performance with common bipolar transistor. We present not only the simulation results for the characteristic curves, but also other relevant parameters related with its performance, such as: the current amplification factor, the open-loop gain, the hybrid parameters and the cutoff frequency. We noted that the spin-charge coupling introduces new phenomena that enrich the functionality characteristics of the magnetic bipolar transistor. Among other things, it has an adjustable band structure, which may be modified during the device operation; it exhibits the already known spin-voltaic effect. On the other hand, we observed that it is necessary a large g-factor to analyze the influence of the field B over the transistor. Nevertheless, we consider the magnetic bipolar transistor as a promising device for spintronic applications.     

Analysis of dark current contributions in mercury cadmium telluride junction diodes

An analytical approach to analyze the dark current–voltage (I–V) and dynamic impedance vs reverse bias voltage (R_d–V) characteristics of an HgCdTe junction diode is presented in this paper. Application to the experimental data is discussed to illustrate the approach. It is shown that the relative contributions of the various dark current contributing mechanisms viz. diffusion, generation–recombination, thermal trap assisted tunneling, band-to-band tunneling, avalanche multiplication and ohmic current component can all be isolated, if present.     

Analysis of carrier injection,accumulation and transport process of pentacene field effect transistors using a Maxwell–Wagner model

Carrier injection, carrier transport and carrier accumulation are three key process to understand the characteristics of organic field effect transistor (OFET) devices. In our previous studies, we showed the evidence of carrier injection from source electrode by means of optical second harmonic generation (SHG) measurement and capacitance–voltage (C–V) measurements, and explained the FET characteristics using a Maxwell–Wagner model. In this paper, to further clarify the behavior of the carrier transport and hole injection from source electrode, we focused on the hysteresis behavior observed in the current–voltage (I–V) and C–V characteristics of pentacene FETs. Employing the electric field induced SHG (EFISHG) and C–V measurements, we could show that the origin of the hysteresis behavior is caused by holes, which are injected and subsequently trapped in FET channel.     

Fabrication of heterostructure-emitter bipolar transistor with a doping-superlattice collector

Grown by molecular beam epitaxy, a sawtooth-doping-superlattice (SDS) structure has been employed in the collector region of a heterostructure-emitter bipolar transistor. For the studied structure, conventional transistor behavior and controllable S-shaped negative-differential-resistance (NDR) performance were simultaneously achieved. First, due to the avalanche multiplications within SDS periods or emitter-base p-n junction depletion region, a bi-directional switching phenomenon was exhibited under the two-terminal operation. In addition, when a base current or bias was applied, transistor properties and a controllable S-shaped NDR family in the large current regime were obtained. The best common-emitter current gain was 25.     

170 keV Proton radiation effects on low-frequency noise of bipolar junction transistors

In this paper, the electrical properties and low-frequency noise for bipolar junction transistors irradiated by 170?keV proton are examined. The result indicates that for the sample under proton irradiation with fluence 1.25?×?10^14?p/cm², base current I_B in low bias range (V_BE < 0.7?V) increases due to superimposition of radiation-induced recombination current, while the gain decreases significantly. Meanwhile, the low-frequency noise increases in the proton-irradiated sample. By analysis of evolution of parameters extracted from low-frequency noise power spectra, it is demonstrated that radiation-induced noise is mainly originated from carrier fluctuation modulated by generation–recombination centers (G–R centers) located at the interface of Si/SiO₂, which are introduced by proton-radiation-induced defects. It is also confirmed that the electrical properties and noise behavior of irradiated sample are mostly affected by the carrier recombination process caused by G–R centers at the interface of Si/SiO₂ than by G–R centers in EB junctions.     

Suppression of the tunneling effect by shallow junctions in field-effect transistor

We study the quantum wave transport in nanoscale field-effect transistors. It has been shown that the tunneling effect between the source and the drain in an ultra-short channel transistor significantly degrades the control of the drain current by the gate. However, the tunneling effect is suppressed by reducing the depth of the source and drain junctions which is designated to suppress the short-channel effects concerning the cut-off characteristics of the field-effect transistor. The reduced junction depth confines the carriers in the direction (y -direction) perpendicular to the transport direction (x -direction). The matching of y -direction wavefunctions at regional boundaries suppresses the tunneling effect and normal FET current–voltage characteristics has been obtained, which explains theoretically the successful fabrication of nanoscale field-effect transistors.     

Functional heterostructure-emitter bipolar transistor (HEBT) with graded-confinement and pseudomorphic-base structure

In this paper, a new functional heterostructure-emitter bipolar transistor (HEBT) with a graded Al_xGa_1 − xAs confinement layer and a pseudomorphic InGaAs/GaAs base structure is fabricated and demonstrated. Due to the insertion of an InGaAs quantum well (QW) between the emitter–base (E–B) junction, the valence band discontinuity can be enhanced and a high emitter injection efficiency may be achieved. Furthermore, the potential spike of the graded Al_xGa_1 − xAs/GaAs heterojunction is expected to be smoothed out which results in a lower offset voltage. The excellent transistor characteristics include a high current gain of 120 and a low offset voltage of 100 mV. In addition, an interesting S-shaped multiple negative differential resistance (MNDR) phenomenon is observed in the inverted operation mode. This may be attributed to an avalanche multiplication and a sequential two-stage barrier lowering effect resulting from the accumulation of holes at the base and electrons at the InGaAs QW, respectively. Consequently, owing to the remarkable transistor performance and MNDR characteristics, the studied HEBT shows good promise for applications in amplifiers and multiple-valued logic circuits.     

Current-voltage characteristics of a spin half-metallic transistor

A new design of spin transistor based on half-metallic ferromagnets (referred to as a spin half-metallic transistor) is suggested, and its current-voltage characteristics are studied theoretically. Like a bipolar transistor, the new device can amplify current. At the same time, the properties of a spin half-metallic transistor depend considerably on the mutual orientation of the magnetizations of its three contacts. We also propose a device based on an F ^↑-F ^↓ junction. This device consists of two single-domain half-metallic parts with opposite magnetizations. There is a range of voltages where the current-voltage characteristics of an F ^↑-F ^↓ junction and a semiconductor diode are similar. The behavior of an F ^↑-F ^↓ junction under different conditions is studied.     

Superconducting transport in an LED with Nb electrodes

Superconducting transport is measured between two superconducting electrodes at the n-type semiconductor side of a superconductor-based LED where a Josephson junction is formed. The characteristics of the Josephson junction are found to be modulated by applying voltage to the normal electrode at the p-type semiconductor side. The Josephson junction characteristics show an extraordinary sensitivity to the radiative recombination process, which we estimate as the recombination efficiency.     

Performance enhancement of a heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) by two-step passivation

An interesting two-step passivation (with ledge structure and sulphide based chemical treatment) on base surface, for the first time, is demonstrated to study the temperature-dependent DC characteristics and noise performance of an InGaP/GaAs heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT). Improved transistor behaviors on maximum current gain β_max, offset voltage ΔV_CE, and emitter size effect are obtained by using the two-step passivation. Moreover, the device with the two-step passivation exhibits relatively temperature-independent and improved thermal stable performances as the temperature is increased. Therefore, the two-step passivationed device can be used for high-temperature and low-power electronics applications.     

A study on the performance of metal-oxide-semiconductor-field-effect-transistors with asymmetric junction doping structure

Diode currents of MOSFET were studied and characterized in detail for the ion implanted pn junction of short channel MOSFETs with shallow drain junction doping structure. The diode current in MOSFET junctions was analyzed on the point of view of the gate-induced-drain leakage (GIDL) current. We could found the GIDL current is generated by the band-to-band tunneling (BTBT) of electrons through the reverse biased channel-to-drain junction and had good agreement with BTBT equation. The effect of the lateral electric field on the GIDL current according to the body bias voltage is characterized and discussed. We measured the electrical doping profiling of MOSFETs with a short gate length, ultra thin oxide thickness and asymmetric doped drain structure and checked the profile had good agreement with simulation result. An accurate effective mobility of an asymmetric source–drain junction transistor was successfully extracted by using the split C–V technique.     

Two-dimensional analysis of the interface states effects on current gain for 4H－SiC bipolar junction transistor

This paper studies two-dimensional analysis of the surface state effect on current gain for a 4H--SiC bipolar junction transistor (BJT). Simulation results indicate the mechanism of current gain degradation, which is surface Fermi level pinning leading to a strong downward bending of the energy bands to form the channel of surface electron recombination current. The experimental results are well-matched with the simulation, which is modeled by exponential distributions of the interface state density replacing the single interface state trap. Furthermore, the simulation reveals that the oxide quality of the base emitter junction interface is very important for 4H--SiC BJT performance.     

Two-dimensional analysis of the interface state effect on current gain for a 4H-SiC bipolar junction transistor

This paper studies two-dimensional analysis of the surface state effect on current gain for a 4H-SiC bipolar junction transistor (BJT).Simulation results indicate the mechanism of current gain degradation,which is surface Fermi level pinning leading to a strong downward bending of the energy bands to form the channel of surface electron recombination current.The experimental results are well-matched with the simulation,which is modeled by exponential distributions of the interface state density replacing the single interface state trap.Furthermore,the simulation reveals that the oxide quality of the base emitter junction interface is very important for 4H-SiC BJT performance.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">I-V,C-V</Emphasis> and deep level transient spectroscopy study of 24 MeV proton-irradiated bipolar junction transistor

This paper describes the effect of 24 MeV proton irradiation on the electrical characteristics of a pnp bipolar junction transistor 2N 2905A. I-V, C-V and DLTS measurements are carried out to characterize the transistor before and after irradiation. The properties of deep level defects observed in the bulk of the transistor are investigated by analysing the DLTS data. Two minority carrier levels, E _C − 0.27 eV and E _C − 0.58 eV and one majority carrier level, E _V +0.18 eV are observed in the base collector junction of the transistor. The irradiated transistor is subjected to isochronal annealing. The influence of isochronal annealing on I-V, C-V and DLTS characteristics are monitored. Most of the deep level defects seem to anneal out above 400°C. It appears that the deep level defects generated in the bulk of the transistor lead to transistor gain degradation. A comparison of proton- and electron-induced gain degradation is made to assess the vulnerability of pnp transistor as against npn transistors.     

中带电压法分离栅控横向pnp双极晶体管辐照感生缺

设计并制作了一种新型双极测试结构,即在常规横向pnp双极晶体管基区表面氧化层上淀积一栅电极,通过扫描栅极所加电压,获得漏极(集电极)电流随栅极电压的变化特性,利用中带电压法分离栅控横向pnp双极晶体管 在辐照过程中感生的氧化物陷阱电荷和界面陷阱电荷.本文对设计的晶体管测试结构和采用 的测试方法做了具体介绍.     

Analysis of current voltage characteristics of MWIR homojunction photodiodes for uncooled operation

Dark currents n⁺/ν/p⁺ Hg_0.69Cd_0.31Te mid wave infrared photodiodes were measured at room temperature. The diodes exhibited negative differential resistance at room-temperature, but with increasing leakage currents as a function of reverse bias. The current–voltage characteristics were simulated and fitted by incorporating trap assisted tunneling via traps and Shockley–Read–Hall generation recombination process due to dislocations in the carrier transport equations. The thermal suppression of carriers was simulated by taking energy level of trap (E_t), trap density (N_t) and the doping concentrations of n⁺ and ν regions as fitting parameters. Values of E_t and N_t were 0.78E_g and ～6–9 × 10¹⁴ cm^?3 respectively for most of the diodes. Variable temperature current voltage measurements on variable area diode array (VADA) structures confirmed the fact that variation in zero bias resistance area product (R₀A) is related to g–r processes originating from variation in concentration and kind of defects that intersect a junction area.     

Experimental and simulation studies of single-event transient in partially depleted SOI MOSFET

In this study, we investigate the single-event transient(SET) characteristics of a partially depleted silicon-on-insulator(PDSOI) metal-oxide-semiconductor(MOS) device induced by a pulsed laser.We measure and analyze the drain transient current at the wafer level. The results indicate that the body-drain junction and its vicinity are more SET sensitive than the other regions in PD-SOI devices.We use ISE 3D simulation tools to analyze the SET response when different regions of the device are hit. Then, we discuss in detail the characteristics of transient currents and the electrostatic potential distribution change in devices after irradiation. Finally, we analyze the parasitic bipolar junction transistor(p-BJT) effect by performing both a laser test and simulations.     

Temperature dependence of the lifetime of nonequilibrium charge carriers in GaP diodes under condition of recombination current domination

Temperature dependence of the lifetime of nonequilibrium charge carriers limited by recombination process in a p-n junction space-charge region has been obtained from current–voltage, capacitance–voltage and thermometric characteristics of GaP p⁺-n junctions in the temperature range 150–500 K. The results have been refined using the data of the junction relaxation characteristics. Parameters of the carriers' lifetime sensitivity to the temperature and current have been determined. It has been established that the charge carriers recombine predominantly through deep single-level amphoteric-type centres. The depth of the centres makes approx. (E_C-1.25 eV). We suppose that the nature of the centres formation is not connected with the junction fabrication technology. It has rather fundamental origin. The results of the present investigation could be used in the development of devices based on wide bandgap semiconductors and particularly high temperature diode sensors.     

An experimental investigation of P–N diode electrical characteristics by soft X-ray annealing method

We present new experimental results for the electrical behaviors of P–N junction diodes irradiated by X-rays. The current–voltage (I–V) characteristics of the P–N junction diodes were measured at room temperature. The reverse and forward current before and after irradiation can be explained relative to the following parameters: carrier generation lifetime (τ_g), ideality factor (n), series resistance (R_s), and sheet resistance (ρ). After irradiation at 40 and 55 keV, a small increment in the diode leakage current was seen, while at 70 keV of exposure, the leakage current was slightly decreased. On the other hand, the forward current was dramatically increased by about three orders of magnitude. In addition, the series resistance of the diodes was confirmed to be positively modified by the use of the soft X-ray annealing method.