Relaxation into tunnel induced nonequilibrium states in metal-oxide semiconductor structures

The relaxation of a metal-oxide semiconductor structure from deep depletion towards a tunnel-induced non-equilibrium steady state is addressed in this work. A simple model was constructed, taking into account thermal generation, tunneling of both types of carriers and impact ionization. Experimental results obtained on p-and n-type Si substrates and oxides thinner than 6.5 nm are shown to be well fitted by the proposed model. A map describing the possible behavior patterns for a structure with given oxide thickness and effective generation velocity is presented. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 41, 862–864 (May 1999) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Reproduced here with stylistic changes by the Translation Editor.