Application of amorphous silicon field effect transistors in integrated circuits

The work described in this paper is concerned with the possible applications in integrated circuits of thin-film field effect transistors (FETs) made from glow discharge amorphous (a-) silicon and silicon nitride. The construction and performance of inverter circuits, employing integrated a-Si load resistors, are described in some detail. The extension of this basic circuit to NAND and NOR gates, to a bistable multivibrator and to a shift register is reported. Based on the excellent photoconductive properties of a-Si an integrated addressable photosensing element has been constructed, which could have potential applications in imaging arrays.     

The use of amorphous and microcrystalline silicon for silicon heterojunction bipolar transistors

The modification of the emitter structure of silicon bipolar transistors results in more freedom in the choice between sometimes conflicting device parameters. The approach followed in this work is the use of an amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) or microcrystalline silicon (c-Si) emitter, creating a real heterojunction with the crystalline silicon base. Due to the larger bandgap of these emitter materials, the back injection of minority carriers is strongly suppressed in comparison with conventional bipolar transistors. Furthermore, the small temperature coefficient of the current gain allows the use of these heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBT) over a wide temperature range. Most likely, the biggest advantage of such HBTs is that a better high-frequency behaviour could be obtained. However, some problems still need to be solved such as the recombination at the emitter-base interface and the high resistivity of the emitter material.On leave from University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA     

Amorphous silicon logic integrated circuits

Amorphous silicon thin-film integrated circuits, with between 4 and 18 transistor functions per chip, have been fabricated on glass substrates. The amorphous silicon and the dielectric layers are deposited by rf glow discharge. The circuits have been designed to realize basic logic functions such as inverters, NAND and NOR gates, and addressable memory cells. For the first time, an amorphous silicon flip flop requiring a supply voltage of only 4.5 V has been manufactured. The logic voltage levels of the flip flop are compatible with standard bipolar TTL circuits. Measurements on an inverter chain show a typical propagation delay time of 70 s and a power-delay-time product of 65 pJ. All of the circuits use n-channel enhancement type load transistors instead of integrated ohmic load resistors. The channel length of the driver transistors is 15 m with a gate source/drain overlap of 7.5 m. Experimental geometry ratios range from =2.25 to =21. Generally, the driver transistors exhibit on/off ratios greater than 10⁶ for supply voltages smaller than 5 V. At these voltages the measured on-currents per unit channel width are in the order of 5...10nA/m.The influence of the geometry ratio on static inverter characteristic and switching speed is discussed by means of a simple model. Two different manufacturing schemes for the fabrication of the integrated circuits are outlined. Mask layouts and experimental transfer characteristics of several integrated circuits are presented.     

The effect ofγ-irradiation on amorphous silicon field effect transistors

The paper deals with the effect ofγ-radiation from a Co⁶⁰ source on the electronic properties of amorphous silicon field effect transistors. These thin film devices, deposited by the glow discharge technique, are being developed for addressable liquid crystal displays, logic circuits and other applications. 1 Mrad (Si) and 5 Mrad (Si) doses were used and the transistors were held at gate voltages between ?8V and +8V during irradiation. Measurements on irradiated specimens showed shifts in threshold voltage of less than 3 V and a change in transconductance below 10%, both of which could be removed by annealing above 130 °C. These results are compared with presently available “radiation hardened” crystalline silicon device structures and it is concluded that in spite of the thicker gate insulation layer (0.3 μm of silicon nitride) of the amorphous devices, the latter are remarkably radiation tolerant, with little degradation in performance. Measurements on irradiatedα-Si films deposited on glass show pronounced conductivity changes, not observed in the transistors. It is suggested that these effects arise at the Si/glass interface, and are prevented by the presence of the silicon nitride film in the devices.     

The characteristics of high current amorphous silicon diodes

Amorphous siliconp−n junctions with various doping profiles have been prepared by the glow discharge technique and the effect of the barrier profile on electrical properties investigated. Current densities of up to 40 A cm⁻² with rectification ratios of 10⁴–10⁵ were obtained withn ⁺−ν−p ⁺ structures. The diode quality factor has also been investigated, both in the dark and under illumination.     

Photo-chemical vapor deposition of hydrogenated amorphous silicon films

A photo-chemical vapor deposition, using ultraviolet light excitation and a mercury photo-sensitization, was investigated for depositing hydrogenated amorphous silicon films from SiH₄. The photoelectric and structural properties were examined to characterize the deposited films. Those properties were depended strongly on substrate temperature, and the films which were deposited at a substrate temperature more than 200°C contained dominant SiH configurations. A relatively large single crystalline grain size of about 0.5 m was observed in a 1.0 m thick film, which was obtained at a substrate temperature as low as 200°C. Phosphorus impurity doping into the films and Pt-Schottky diode fabrication were also attempted.     

The characteristics and properties of optimised amorphous silicon field effect transistors

A series of experiments aimed at improving the performance of amorphous silicon field effect transistors has been carried out. The dc and dynamic characteristics of the optimised devices are described. Stable devices capable of ON-currents of the order of 100 μA with OFF-currents ?10^?11 A can be fabricated which could, in principle, be used to address more than 1000 lines of a liquid crystal display. The properties of the highly conducting ON-state channel have also been studied. The field effect mobility, 0.3 cm² V^?1 s^?1 at room temperature, has an activation energy of 0.1 eV at the higher gate voltages. The possible reasons for the improvement in performance over earlier devices are discussed.     

Temperature dependence of photodegradation in amorphous hydrogenated silicon

Measurements of steady-state photoconductivity with respect to light-induced defect generation in amorphous hydrogenated silicon (a-Si: H) show that the power index of the time evolution (long-term observation) of the photodegradation is determined by the exposure temperature and the material.     

Potential of amorphous silicon for solar cells

This paper reviews recent developments in the field of amorphous-silicon-based thin-film solar cells and discusses potentials for further improvements. Creative efforts in materials research, device physics, and process engineering have led to highly efficient solar cells based on amorphous hydrogenated silicon. Sophisticated multijunction solar cell designs make use of its unique material properties and strongly suppress light induced degradation. Texture-etching of sputtered ZnO:Al films is presented as a novel technique to design optimized light trapping schemes for silicon thin-film solar cells in both p-i-n and n-i-p device structure. Necessary efforts will be discussed to close the efficiency gap between the highest stabilized efficiencies demonstrated on lab scale and efficiencies achieved in production. In case of a-Si:H/a-Si:H stacked cells prepared on glass substrates, significant reduction of process-related losses and the development of superior TCO substrates on large areas promise distinctly higher module efficiencies. A discussion of future perspectives comprises the potential of new deposition techniques and concepts combining the advantages of amorphous and crystalline silicon thin-film solar cells. Received: 1 March 1999 / Accepted: 28 March 1999 / Published online: 14 June 1999     

Analytical model of the drain current in amorphous silicon junction field effect transistors

This paper presents an analytical model of a hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) junction field effect transistor (JFET) based on a p-type/intrinsic/n-type stacked structure. The p-doped layer is connected to the transistor gate electrode, while the n-layer acts as the device channel. The analysis shows the effect of the geometrical and physical parameters of the intrinsic and n-doped layers on the transistor characteristics. In particular, the intrinsic layer thickness plays a central role in determining the depletion region of the n-channel and, as a consequence, the device threshold voltage. The drain current behavior achieved with a modeled parametric analysis is in very good agreement with the experimental drain current measured on fabricated JFET, both in triode and pinch-off regions. This demonstrates the model feasibility as an effective tool to design thin film electronic circuit as a sensor signal amplifier based on a-Si:H p-i-n junction.     

Relationship between optical and structural properties of hydrogenated amorphous silicon

A series of experimental studies has been made on the relationship between optical and structural properties of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) prepared under various conditions. It has been clarified by analysing the results that the shape of the energy spectrum near the band edge and the distribution of the valence-band tail states depend primarily on the structural disorder of the Si network in a-Si:H. On the other hand, the total content and the bonding mode of bonded hydrogen have little effects on these electronic properties of a-Si:H. It has also been found that the distribution of the valenceband tail states might be related to other unidentified factor(s) besides the structural disorder. The present results have been compared with those of the previous experimental and theoretical studies.     

Amorphous silicon diodes and TFTs for active matrix flat panel display applications

The use of a-Si devices (diodes and transistors) in active matrix flat-panel displays is reviewed. The fabrication of the elements and their characteristics with steady and pulsed applied potentials are discussed. Two experimental arrays of 32×32 BBDs and 256×320 TFTs are shown.Part of this work is supported by CEE under Esprit program No. 833     

Defects and impurities in amorphous semiconductors and in liquid electrolytes

Amorphous (a-) semiconductors like a-Si:H and the chalcogenide glasses possess a general tendency to establish an overall equilibrium between the electronic system and the lattice with its dopant and defect sites. In the present paper the chemical interactions which establish these equilibria within the bulk of the a-semiconductor lattices are compared to chemical interactions in liquid electrolytes, particularly to those in H₂O. These considerations reveal close similarities between autocompensation doping in a-semiconductors and acid/base reactions in H₂O. The effects of light and field-effect induced defect formation, on the other hand, are shown to be related to the phenomenon of electrolysis in H₂O. The consideration of these analogies further emphasizes the roles of charge-carrier localization and that of H-diffusion in promoting dopant and defect equilibration reactions in a-semiconductors.     

Gadolinium scandate as an alternative gate dielectric in field effect transistors on conventional and strained silicon

Long channel n-type metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors on thin conventional and strained silicon on insulator substrates have been prepared by integrating gadolinium scandate as high-κ gate dielectric in a gate last process. The GdScO₃ films were deposited by electron beam evaporation and subsequently annealed in oxygen atmosphere. Electrical characterization of readily processed devices reveals well behaved output and transfer characteristics with high I _on/I _off ratios of 10⁶–10⁸, and steep inverse subthreshold slopes down to 66 mV/dec. Carrier mobilities of 155 cm²/Vs for the conventional and 366 cm²/Vs for the strained silicon substrates were determined.     

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon films obtained by a low pressure dc glow discharge

Films of a-Si: H have been deposited by means of a dc hot cathode discharge of SiH₄ with electrostatic confinement at a pressure as low as 0.4 Pa. The plasma used is quite quiescent as has been observed by means of reproducible Langmuir probe measurements. Substrates have been placed at different locations in between the electrodes, some of them facing the anode and the others facing the cathode.Films deposited on substrates facing the cathode present a granular, non-columnar, structure, an IR spectrum with only SiH absorption peaks, and a very low photoresponse. Films deposited on substrates facing the anode have a similar IR spectrum but are homogeneous, have lower hydrogen content, and present a high photoresponse. The optical absorption coefficient shows in all samples thenE=C(E–E₀) ^x behaviour, but with exponentx=3 and notx=2 as is usually considered in a-SiH.     

Modelling of contact effects in microcrystalline silicon thin-film transistors

Hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon has recently emerged as a promising material system for large-area electronic applications such as thin-film transistors and solar cells. In this paper, thin-film transistors based on microcrystalline silicon were realized with charge carrier mobilities exceeding 40 cm²/Vs. The electrical characteristics of the microcrystalline silicon thin-film transistors are limited by the influence of contact effects. The influence of the contact effects on the charge carrier mobility was investigated for transistors with different dimensions of the drain and source contacts. The experimental results were compared to an electrical model which describes the influence of the drain and source contact dimension on the transistor parameters. Furthermore, the Transmission Line Method was applied to investigate the contact effects of the thin-film transistors with different drain and source contact dimensions. Finally, optimized device geometries like the channel length of the transistor and dimension of the drain and source contacts were derived for the microcrystalline transistors based on the electrical model.     

Photorefractive properties in homogeneous and heterogeneous polymer/liquid crystal composites

The photorefractivity of a photorefractive composite consisting of poly(N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) doped with a non-room-temperature liquid crystal, 4-butyloxy-4’-cyanobiphenyl (4OCB), and C₆₀ was studied by means of measuring the two-beam coupling coefficients. The results show that the photorefractivity is enhanced by phase separation. Received: 6 December 2000 / Revised version: 5 March 2001 / Published online: 9 May 2001     

Current collapse and reliability of III‐N heterostructure field effect transistors

Measurements of GaN HFET lifetime as a function of temperature show that different degradation mechanisms are involved at low temperatures (close to room temperature) and high temperatures (above 150 °C). The degradation at low temperatures is linked to the trap generation and can be explained using the current collapse model. At higher tempe‐ ratures, other degradation mechanisms become important or even dominant. The current collapse related degradation can be diminished by using improved device design, which will greatly increase the overall lifetime (up to long lifetimes obtained by extrapolating high temperature data to room temperature). (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Application of piecewise linear regression twice to inspect the defective regions on thin film transistor liquid crystal display panels

Detecting defects in thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panels can be difficult due to non-uniform background brightness and slightly different brightness levels between the defective regions and the background. One well-known method is to inspect the defects of TFT-LCD panels using the polynomial approximation method. However, there are some problems such as determination of the polynomial degree and ghost objects. In this paper, to overcome these problems, we propose a new algorithm using the piecewise linear regression twice and Niblack’s method which do not require to determine the polynomial degree for the approximation. Our algorithm effectively removed ghost objects. The experimental results show that our proposed method performed well and was good enough to substitute the polynomial approximation method.     

Clustering effect in the crystallization process of a CuZr amorphous alloy

The structural relaxation and crystallization processes of the Cu₅₀Zr₅₀ amorphous alloy have been studied by field ion microscopy (FIM) on an atomic scale. An interesting phenomenon which we call the clustering effect was observed for the first time as far as we know. In the temperature range 673–723 K, clusters consisting of 3, 4, or 5 atoms formed and migrated towards certain crystalline centers. They then combined with one another and rearranged to produce an ordered atomic array. This clustering process including the formation, migration, combination and rearrangement of clusters is considered as a structural relaxation process.