Effect of bias condition on heavy ion radiation in bipolar junction transistor

The characteristic degradations in silicon NPN bipolar junction transistor (BJT) of 3DG142 type are examined under the irradiation with 40-MeV chlorine (Cl) ions under forward, grounded, and reverse bias conditions, respectively. Different electrical parameters are in-situ measured during the exposure under each bias condition. From the experimental data, larger variation of base current (I_B) is observed after irradiation at a given value of base-emitter voltage (V_BE), while the collector current is slightly affected by irradiation at a given V_BE. The gain degradation is affected mostly by the behaviour of the base current. From the experimental data, the variation of current gain in the case of forward bias is much smaller than that in the other conditions. Moreover, for 3DG142 BJT, the current gain degradation in the case of reverse bias is more severe than that in the grounded case at low fluence, while at high fluence, the gain degradation in the reverse bias case becomes smaller than that in the grounded case.     

Effect of bias condition on heavy ion radiation in bipolar junction transistors

The characteristic degradations in a silicon NPN bipolar junction transistor(BJT) of 3DG142 type are examined under irradiation with 40-MeV chlorine(Cl) ions under forward,grounded,and reverse bias conditions,respectively.Different electrical parameters are in-situ measured during the exposure under each bias condition.From the experimental data,a larger variation of base current(I B) is observed after irradiation at a given value of base-emitter voltage(V BE),while the collector current is slightly affected by irradiation at a given V BE.The gain degradation is affected mostly by the behaviour of the base current.From the experimental data,the variation of current gain in the case of forward bias is much smaller than that in the other conditions.Moreover,for 3DG142 BJT,the current gain degradation in the case of reverse bias is more severe than that in the grounded case at low fluence,while at high fluence,the gain degradation in the reverse bias case becomes smaller than that in the grounded case.     

Simulation of energy and fluence dependence of heavy ion induced displacement damage factor in bipolar junction transistor

This article presents the theoretical calculation of the variation of displacement damage factors as a function of energy and rad equivalent fluence in bipolar junction transistor for various particulate radiation viz., He, Si, Cl, Ti, Ni, Br, Ag, I, and Au. The calculation is based on the experimental data on γ-ray induced gain degradation in a commercial space borne BJT (2N3019). The method involves the calculation of γ-ray dose (rad(Si)) equivalent of effective particle fluence. The linear energy transfer (LET) in silicon for different particle radiation obtained from TRIM calculation has been used for the conversion of γ-dose into fluence of various particles. The estimation predicts a smooth increase in the displacement damage factor as the mass of the ion increases. Further, the displacement damage factor reaches a maximum at the same value of energy, which corresponds to maximum LET for all heavy ions. The maximum value of damage factor marginally decreases with increasing ion fluence for an ion of given energy. The results are compared with the data available in the literature for proton, deuteron, and helium induced displacement damage.     

Dielectric response of makrofol-KG polycarbonate irradiated with 145 MeV Ne6+ and 100 MeV Si8+ ions

The passage of heavy ions in a track detector polymeric material produces lattice deformations. These deformations may be in the form of latent tracks or may vanish by self annealing in time. Heavy ion irradiation produces modifications in polymers in their relevant electrical, chemical and optical properties in the form of rearrangement of bonding, cross-linking, chain scission, formation of carbon rich clusters and changes in dielectric properties etc. Modification depends on the ion, its energy and fluence and the polymeric material. In the present work, a study of the dielectric response of pristine and heavy ion irradiated Makrofol-KG polycarbonate is carried out. 40 μm thick Makrofol-KG polycarbonate films were irradiated to various fluences with Si⁸⁺ ions of 100 MeV energy from Pelletron at Inter University Accelerator Centre (IUAC), New Delhi and Ne⁶⁺ ions of 145 MeV from Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre, Kolkata. On irradiation with heavy ions dielectric constant (ɛ′) decreases with frequency where ɛ′ increases with fluence for both the ions. Variation of loss factor (tan δ) with frequency for pristine and irradiated with Si ions reveals that tan δ increases as the frequency increases. Tan δ also increases with fluence. While Ne irradiated samples tan δ shows slight variation with frequency as well as with fluence. Tan δ has positive values indicating the dominance of inductive behavior.      

Probing charge carrier compensation in high energy ion irradiated III–V semiconductor by Raman spectroscopy and Hall measurements

Raman spectroscopy and Hall measurements have been carried out to investigate the differences in near‐surface charge carrier modulation in high energy (~100 MeV) silicon ion (Si⁸⁺) and oxygen ion (O⁷⁺) irradiated n‐GaAs. In the case of O ion irradiation, the observed decrease in carrier concentration with increase in ion fluence could be explained in the view of charge compensation by possible point defect trap centers, which can form because of elastic collisions of high energy ions with the target nuclei. In Si irradiated n‐GaAs one would expect the carrier compensation to occur at a fluence of 2.5 × 10¹³ ions/cm², if the same mechanism of acceptor state formation, as in case of O irradiation, is considered. However, we observe the charge compensation in this system at a fluence of 5 × 10¹² ions/cm². We discuss the role of the complex defect states, which are formed because of the interaction of the primary point defects, in determining carrier concentration in a Si irradiated n‐GaAs wafer. The above results are combined with the reported data from the literature for high energy silver ion irradiated n‐GaAs, in order to illustrate the effect of both electronic and nuclear energy loss on trap creation and charge compensation. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effects of high-energy ion irradiations on the I–V characteristics of silicon NPN transistors

The silicon NPN rf power transistors were irradiated with different linear energy transfer (LET) ions such as 50?MeV Li³⁺, 80?MeV C⁶⁺ and 150?MeV Ag¹²⁺ ions in the dose range of 1–100?Mrad. The SRIM simulation was used to understand the energy loss and range of these ions in the transistor structure. The different electrical parameters such as Gummel characteristics, excess base current (ΔI_B), DC current gain (h_FE), displacement damage factor (K) and output characteristics were systematically studied before and after irradiation. The ion irradiation results were compared with ⁶⁰Co-gamma irradiation result in the same dose range. A considerable increase in base current (I_B) and a decrease in h_FE and I_CSat were observed after irradiation. The degradation in the electrical parameters was comparably very high for Ag¹²⁺ ion-irradiated transistor when compared to other ion-irradiated transistors, whereas the degradation in the electrical parameters for Li³⁺ and C⁶⁺ ion-irradiated transistors was comparable with gamma-irradiated transistor. The isochronal annealing study was conducted on the 100?Mrad irradiated transistors up to 500°C to analyze the recovery in different electrical parameters. The h_FE and other electrical parameters of irradiated transistors were almost recovered after 500°C for 50?MeV Li³⁺, 80?MeV C⁶⁺ ion and ⁶⁰Co-gamma-irradiated transistors, whereas for 150?MeV Ag¹²⁺ ion-irradiated transistor, the recovery in electrical characteristics is not complete.     

Nanoscale ion-beam mixing in Au–Si and Ag–Si eutectic systems

MeV ion induced mixing in the nanoscale regime for Au and Ag nanoislands on silicon substrates has been studied. Au and Ag nanoislands are grown on silicon substrates at room temperature and irradiated with 1.5-MeV Au²⁺ ions at various fluences. Cross-sectional high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) are used to study the ion-beam mixing in Au/SiO_x/Si and Ag/SiO_x/Si systems. We observe a metastable mixed phase for the Au–Si system at a fluence of 1×10¹⁴ ionscm^-2, while no mixed phase is formed for the Ag–Si system. For both Au–Si and Ag–Si systems, a part of the islands is pushed into the substrate. The mixed phase of the Au–Si system is found to be crystalline in nature. The higher eutectic temperature and lower heat of mixing of the Ag–Si system compared to the Au–Si system could be responsible for the lack of mixing and silicide formation in the Ag–Si system. PACS 61.80.Jh; 61.82.Rx; 68.37.Lp; 64.75.+g; 61.46.+w     

Degradation mechanisms of current gain in NPN transistors

An investigation of ionization and displacement damage in silicon NPN bipolar junction transistors (BJTs) is presented. The transistors were irradiated separately with 90-keV electrons, 3-MeV protons and 40-MeV Br ions. Key parameters were measured {\em in-situ} and the change in current gain of the NPN BJTS was obtained at a fixed collector current (I_{\rm c}=1~mA). To characterise the radiation damage of NPN BJTs, the ionizing dose D_{\i} and displacement dose D_{\d} as functions of chip depth in the NPN BJTs were calculated using the SRIM and Geant4 code for protons, electrons and Br ions, respectively. Based on the discussion of the radiation damage equation for current gain, it is clear that the current gain degradation of the NPN BJTs is sensitive to both ionization and displacement damage. The degradation mechanism of the current gain is related to the ratio of D_{\rm d}/(D_{\rm d}+D_{\rm i}) in the sensitive region given by charged particles. The irradiation particles leading to lower D_{\rm d}/(D_{\rm d}+D_{\rm i}) within the same chip depth at a given total dose would mainly produce ionization damage to the NPN BJTs. On the other hand, the charged particles causing larger D_{\rm d}/(D_{\rm d}+D_{\rm i}) at a given total dose would tend to generate displacement damage to the NPN BJTs. The Messenger--Spratt equation could be used to describe the experimental data for the latter case.     

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.     

Electrical and structural properties of the swift heavy ion irradiated Au/n-GaAs schottky barrier diodes

Abstract

Au/n-GaAs Schottky Barrier Diodes (SBDs) have been fabricated on LEC grown silicon doped (100) GaAs single crystals. The SBDs were irradiated using high energy (120 MeV) silicon ion with fluences of 1 × 10 ¹¹ and 1 × 10¹² ions/cm². Current-Voltage (I-V) characteristics of unirradiated and irradiated diodes were analyzed. The change in the reverse leakage current increases with increasing ion fluence. This is due to the irradiation induced defects at the interface and its increase with the fluence. The diodes were annealed at 573 and 673 K. to study the effect of annealing. The rectifying behavior of the irradiated (fluence of 1 × 10¹² ions/cm¹²) SBDs improves upon as the annealing temperature increases and is attributed to the in situ self-annealing during irradiation. Scanning Electron Microscopic analysis was carried out on the irradiated samples to delineate the projected range and to observe defects.     

Radiation effects of 50-MeV protons on PNP bipolar junction transistors

The effects of radiation on 3CG110 PNP bipolar junction transistors (BJTs) are characterized using 50-MeV protons, 40-MeV Si ions, and 1-MeV electrons. In this paper, electrical characteristics and deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) are utilized to analyze radiation defects induced by ionization and displacement damage. The experimental results show a degradation of the current gain and an increase in the types of radiation defect with increasing fluences of 50-MeV protons. Moreover, by comparing the types of damage caused by different radiation sources, the characteristics of the radiation defects induced by irradiation show that 50-MeV proton irradiation can produce both ionization and displacement defects in the 3CG110 PNP BJTs, in contrast to 40-MeV Si ions, which mainly generate displacement defects, and 1-MeV electrons, which mainly produce ionization defects. This work provides direct evidence of a synergistic effect between the ionization and displacement defects caused in PNP BJTs by 50-MeV protons.     

An investigation of electron and oxygen ion damage in Si npn RF power transistors

Abstract

The effects of 8 MeV electrons and 60 and 95 MeV oxygen ions on the electrical properties of Si npn RF power transistors have been investigated as a function of fluence. The dc current gain (h _FE), displacement damage factor, excess base current (Δ I _B=I _Bpost?I _Bpre), excess collector current (Δ I _C=I _Cpost?I _Cpre), collector saturation current (I _CS) and deep level transient spectroscopy trap signatures of the irradiated transistors were systematically evaluated.     

Properties of 80-MeV oxygen ion irradiated ZnS:Mn nanoparticles and exploitation in nanophotonics

ZnS:Mn nanoparticles of size variation 11–17 nm were synthesized by a simple and inexpensive chemical method and confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Presuming electronic energy loss (S _e>S _n, S _n being nuclear energy loss) to be the dominant phenomenon, they were irradiated by 80-MeV energetic oxygen ions with fluence of 10¹¹ to 10¹³ ions/cm². Photoluminescence (PL) spectra revealed three major emission bands ~445 nm, ~582 nm and ~706 nm; which are ascribed to D–A pair transition, Mn emission and surface state led fluorescence activation. The recovery of Mn emission and tunable surface state emission have been observed with ion fluence variation. Infra-red (IR) spectra of irradiated samples show great extent of oscillation with respect to amplitude due to ion fluence variation however, phonon energy (~98 MeV) remains unchanged. The possible applications of these modified properties in nanophotonics are also highlighted.     

Effect of swift heavy ion irradiation on thermal,optical and structural properties of poly vinylidene chloride

Poly vinylidene chloride (PVDC) irradiated with lithium (50 MeV), carbon (85 MeV), nickel (120 MeV) and silver ions (120 MeV) having fluence range of 1 × 10¹¹ ions/cm² to 3 × 10¹² ions/cm² have been studied using different techniques i.e. XRD (X-ray diffraction), FTIR (Fourier transform infrared), UV–Visible and TGA (thermo-gravimetric analysis). In XRD analysis, the intensity of diffraction peaks of PVDC irradiated with lithium ions was enhanced at lower fluence as compared to pristine. The shift in optical absorption edge in irradiated PVDC was correlated with the decrease in optical band gap energy. The distinguishable characteristic peaks were observed due to UV–Vis analysis, in lithium irradiated samples of PVDC at higher fluences. The % age decrease in optical band gap energy for the respective ions were 30.9%, 34.16%, 81.1%, 87.02% respectively. Formation of double carbon bonds and breaking of C–O and C–Cl bonds with the release of Cl in irradiated PVDC was observed in FTIR spectra. In Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), the % age weight loss observed for irradiated samples with increase in ion fluence was lesser than the % age weight loss observed in pristine sample.     

Carbon (70 MeV) and copper (120 MeV) ions irradiation effects in Makrofol-N

Makrofol-N polycarbonate was irradiated with carbon (70 MeV) and copper (120 MeV) ions to analyze the induced effects with respect to optical and structural properties. In the present investigation, the fluence for carbon and copper beams was kept in the range of 1×10¹¹– 1×10¹³ ions/cm² to study the swift heavy ion induced modifications. UV–VIS, FTIR and XRD techniques were utilized to study the induced changes. The analysis of UV–VIS absorption studies revealed that the optical energy gap was reduced by 17% on carbon irradiation, whereas the copper beam leads to a decrease of 52% at the highest fluence of 1×10¹³ ions/cm². The band gap can be correlated to the number of carbon atoms, N, in a cluster with a modified Robertson's equation. In copper (120 MeV) ions irradiated polycarbonate, the number of carbon atoms in a cluster was increased from 63 to 269 with the increase of ion fluence from 0 to 1×10¹³ ions/cm², whereas N is raised only up to 91 when the same polymer films were irradiated with carbon (70 MeV) ions under similar conditions. FTIR analysis showed a decrease in almost all characteristic absorption bands under irradiation. The formation of hydroxyl (? OH) and alkene (C?C) groups were observed in Makrofol-N at higher fluence on irradiation with both types of ions, while the formation alkyne end (R? C≡ CH) group was observed only after copper ions irradiation. The radii of the alkyne production of about 3.3 nm were deduced for copper (120 MeV) ions. XRD measurements show a decrease in intensity of the main peak and an increase of the average intermolecular spacing with the increase of ion fluence, which may be attributed to the structural degradation of Makrofol-N on swift ion irradiation.     

Dimpling—A new manifestation of ion-produced lattice damage

Abstract

Bombardment of thin (1–10 μ) single crystal targets with energetic ion beams has been found to result in macroscopic distortion of the thin film in the bombarded region. This effect, which has been euphemistically termed a ‘dimple’, is readily observed with the naked eye even at relatively low particle fluence. A useful first-order model has been developed which interprets the dimpling as an expansion of the bombarded region. For very thin samples, this expansion can be accommodated by bowing of the crystal out of the original crystal plane. For this simple model, the fractional expansion is proportional to (δ/d)² where δ is the maximum displacement from the original crystal plane and d is the diameter of the bombarded area. This measurement allows expansioh to be determined with a sensitivity comparable to or better than the most sensitive existing methods.

For silicon about 3 μ thick bombarded by 1.8 MeV He ions, the expansion increases essentially linearly with fluence at the lowest fluence (below about 10¹⁵ to 10¹⁴ cm^?2). In this region about 0.001 atomic volumes are added per incident ion. As the fluence is increased, the apparent expansion begins to increase more rapidly than linearly but approaches a saturation value at the highest fluence (about 10¹⁸ cm^?2). The effect of particle flux, incident energy, and bombardment temperature is discussed as well as some preliminary results on C ion produced dimples in Si and the behavior of Ge samples.

Thirty-minute isochronal annealing of silicon samples irradiated with He ions at room temperature shows reverse annealing for temperatures up to about 200–300°C. The dimple begins to anneal at 300°C and disappears after annealing to 600–700°C.

After irradiation, the dimpled region absorbs light more strongly in the visible and near IR region. This disappears with annealing before the dimple itself completely disappears and is felt to be largely due to scattering from defect clusters.     

Temperature dependence of ion-induced auger electron emission from (111) silicon: I. Experiments

Abstract

Measurements of both secondary electron emission coefficient γ and SiL₂₃ Auger yield ρ_A obtained from (111) Si target bombarded by high fluence of noble gas ions were performed. For Si irradiated at room temperature at doses more than 10¹⁷ ions per cm², monotonous increasing variation of γ and ρ_A versus incidence angle i was observed. For Si irradiated at a temperature more than a critical value, γ(i) and ρ_A(i) curves exhibited, superimposed to monotonous variation, some minima when the ion beam penetrates the crystal along low index directions. In the range 20–650°C, the Auger yield temperature dependence showed a sharp variation around a critical value depending on the ion mass for a given incident energy. These results are linked to an amorphous-crystalline phase transition.     

Surface morphology of MgO (100) crystals implanted with MeV Al+ and Al2+ ions

MgO (100) single crystals are implanted with 1.50-MeV Al⁺ and 3.00-MeV Al₂ ⁺ ions at a fluence of 1×10¹⁵ Al  atoms  cm^-2 under high-vacuum conditions. The surface morphology of the substrate is measured in air using atomic force microscopy and X-ray reflectometry followed by computer-simulated spectrum analysis. The ion-irradiated areas are found to protrude to different heights on the nanometre scale. Small height differences are observed in the areas irradiated by Al⁺ and Al₂ ⁺ ions of comparable energy, dose rate and total fluence. The results indicate that protrusions are most likely caused by implantation-induced point defects (vacancies) generated in the crystal during implantation. Other possibilities for the cause of protrusions are discussed. Thermal treatment stimulates a partial recovery of the implantation damage and alters the topography of MgO surfaces. Received: 22 May 2001 / Accepted: 30 May 2001 / Published online: 25 July 2001     

95 MeV Oxygen Ion Irradiation Effects on N-Channel Mosfets

The N-channel metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) were exposed to 95 MeV oxygen ions in the fluence range of 5 × 10¹⁰ to 5 × 10¹³ ions/cm². The influence of ion irradiation on threshold voltage (V_TH), linear drain current (I_DLin), leakage current (I_L), drain conductance (gD), transconductance (gm), mobility (μ) and drain saturation current (I_DSat) of MOSFETs was studied systematically for various fluence. The V_TH of the irradiated MOSFET was found to decrease significantly after irradiation. The interface (N_it) and oxide trapped charge (N_ot) were estimated from the subthreshold measurements and were found to increase after irradiation. The densities of oxide-trapped (ΔN_it) charge in irradiated MOSFETs were found to be higher than those of the interface trapped charge (ΔN_ot). The I_DLin and I_DSat of MOSFETs were also found to decrease significantly after irradiation. Studies on effects of 95 MeV oxygen ion irradiation on gm, gD and μ show a degradation varying from 70 to 75% after irradiation. The mobility degradation coefficients for N_it(α_it) and N_ot(α_it) were estimated. The results of these studies are presented and discussed.     

Measuring fluence of fast neutrons with planar silicon detectors

The results of measurements of 1-MeV (Si) equivalent fast neutron fluence with silicon planar detectors are reported. The measurement method is based on the linear dependence of the reverse detector current increment on the neutron fluence: ΔI = α _I × Φ × V. This technique provides an opportunity to measure the equivalent fluence in a wide dynamic range from 108 to 10¹⁶ cm^–2 with an unknown neutron energy spectrum and without detector calibration. The proposed method was used for monitoring in radiation resistance tests of different detector types at channel no. 3 of IBR-2 and for determining the fluence of fission and leakage neutrons at the KVINTA setup.