Optically controlled SiCGe/SiC heterojunction transistor with charge-compensation layer

A novel optically controlled SiCGe/SiC heterojunction transistor with charge-compensation technique has been simulated by using commercial simulator. This paper discusses the electric field distribution, spectral response and transient response of the device. Due to utilizing p-SiCGe charge-compensation layer, the responsivity increases nearly two times and breakdown voltage increases 33%. The switching characteristic illustrates that the device is latch-free and its fall time is much longer than the rise time. With an increase of the light power density and wavelength, the rise time and fall time will become shorter and longer, respectively. In terms of carrier lifetime, a compromise should be made between the responsivity and switching speed, the ratio of them reaches maximum value when the minority carrier lifetime equals 90 ns.