The work estimates the minimum channel length of the MOSFET transistor, which is the bacis device of modern electronics. Taking into account the real shape of potential barrier in the channel shows that the electron tunnels through a region significantly shorter than the physical length of the channel in the presence of drain voltage, and so the available estimate of the minimum quantum constraint channel length in silicon MOSFET, 1.2 nm, is significantly underestimated. The fact makes it clear why after reaching 5 nm working lengths of the channel it was impossible to reach the long-declared values of 3 nm under maintaining the proper level of functionality of the transistor. The estimates made in this work confirm that the fundamental scaling limits of silicon MOSFETs have almost been reached.
We study tunneling between a localized defect state and a conduction band in the presence of strong electron-electron and electron-phonons interactions. We derive the tunneling rate as a function of the position of the defect energy level relative to the Fermi energy of conduction electrons. We argue that our results can explain the large tunneling timescales observed in experiments on random telegraph signals in ${\rm Si}$ metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors.
Schottky Barrier (SB)-MOSFET technology offers intriguing possibilities for cryogenic nano-scale devices, such as Si quantum devices and superconducting devices. We present experimental results on a novel device architecture where the gate electrode is self-aligned with the device channel and overlaps the source and drain electrodes. This facilitates a sub-5 nm gap between the source/drain and channel, and no spacers are required. At cryogenic temperatures, such devices function as p-MOS Tunnel FETs, as determined by the Schottky barrier at the Al-Si interface, and as a further advantage, fabr…
Using a metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) structure with a high-quality CoFe/n^+Si contact, we systematically study spin injection and spin accumulation in a nondegenerated Si channel with a doping density of ~ 4.5*10^15cm^-3 at room temperature. By applying the gate voltage (V_G) to the channel, we obtain sufficient bias currents (I_Bias) for creating spin accumulation in the channel and observe clear spin-accumulation signals even at room temperature. Whereas the magnitude of the spin signals is enhanced by increasing I_Bias, it is reduced by increasing V_G interesti…
Ambipolar currents in Germanium p-type nanowire Schottky barrier MOSFETs were calculated fully quantum-mechanically by using the multi-band k.p method and the non-equilibrium Green's function approach. We investigated the performance of devices with 100, 110, and 111 channel orientations, respectively, by varying the nanowire width, Schottky barrier height, and EOT. The 111 oriented devices showed the best performance. In comparison to Si as a channel material, Ge is more desirable because more current can be injected into the channel, resulting in steeper subthreshold slope and higher on-stat…
We theoretically investigate the spin injection in different FM/I/n-Si tunnel contacts by using the lattice NEGF method. We find that the tunnel contacts with low barrier materials such as TiO$_2$ and Ta$_{2}$O$_{5}$, have much lower resistances than the conventional barrier materials, resulting in a wider and attainable optimum parameters window for improving the spin injection efficiency and MR ratio of a vertical spin MOSFET. Additionally, we find the spin asymmetry coefficient of TiO$_2$ tunnel contact has a negative value, while that of Ta$_{2}$O$_{5}$ contact can be tuned between positiv…
In this work we propose a fully experimental method to extract the barrier lowering in short-channel saturated MOSFETs using the Lundstrom backscattering transport model in a one sub-band approximation and carrier degeneracy. The knowledge of the barrier lowering at the operative bias point in the inversion regime is of fundamental importance in device scaling. At the same time we obtain also an estimate of the backscattering ratio and of the saturation inversion charge. Respect to previously reported works on extraction of transport parameters based on the Lundstrom model, our extraction meth…
A real-space quantum transport simulator for carbon nanoribbon (CNR) MOSFETs has been developed. Using this simulator, the performance of carbon nanoribbon (CNR) MOSFETs is examined in the ballistic limit. The impact of quantum effects on device performance of CNR MOSFETs is also studied. We found that 2D semi-infinite graphene contacts provide metal-induced-gap-states (MIGS) in the CNR channel. These states would provide quantum tunneling in the short channel device and cause Fermi level pining. These effects cause device performance degradation both on the ON-state and the OFF-state. Pure 1D…
We propose a theoretical model for describing the operation of a transistor with a MoS2 monolayer channel, which allows to obtain an analytical approximation of the potential in the channel. This potential depends on the drain and gate voltages. On this basis we make estimates for the minimum channel lengths due to the fundamental restriction of quantum tunneling through the barrier. It is shown that the relatively large effective mass of electrons in the MoS2 monolayer allows to predict the creation of devices with channels of a significantly shorter (2.5 - 3 nm) length than in traditional si…
Ballistic transport characteristics of metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) based on anisotropic two-dimensional (2-D) materials monolayer HfS2 and phosphorene are explored through quantum transport simulations. We focus on the effects of the channel crystal orientation and the channel length scaling on device performances. Especially, the role of degenerate conduction band (CB) valleys in monolayer HfS2 is comprehensively analyzed. Benchmarking monolayer HfS2 with phosphorene MOSFETs, we predict that the effect of channel orientation on device performances is much weak…
Electronic transport in a carbon nanotube (CNT) metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) is simulated using the non-equilibrium Green's functions method with the account of electron-phonon scattering. For MOSFETs, ambipolar conduction is explained via phonon-assisted band-to-band (Landau-Zener) tunneling. In comparison to the ballistic case, we show that the phonon scattering shifts the onset of ambipolar conduction to more positive gate voltage (thereby increasing the off current). It is found that the subthreshold swing in ambipolar conduction can be made as steep as 40mV/d…
In this work we propose a channel backscattering model in which increased carrier temperature at the top of the potential energy barrier in the channel is taken into account. This model represents an extension of a previous model by the same authors which highlighted the importance of considering the partially ballistic transport between the source contact and the top of the potential energy barrier in the channel. The increase of carrier temperature is precisely due to energy dissipation between the source contact and the top of the barrier caused by the high saturation current. To support ou…
In this letter we not only show improvement in the performance but also in the reliability of 30nm thick biaxially strained SiGe (20%Ge) channel on Si p-MOSFETs. Compared to Si channel, strained SiGe channel allows larger hole mobility (μh) in the transport direction and alleviates charge flow towards the gate oxide. μh enhancement by 40% in SiGe and 100% in Si-cap SiGe is observed compared to the Si hole universal mobility. A ~40% reduction in NBTI degradation, gate leakage and flicker noise (1/f) is observed which is attributed to a 4% increase in the hole-oxide barrier height (ϕ) in SiGe. S…
We study the transport properties of monolayer MX2 (M = Mo, W; X = S, Se, Te) n- and p- channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) using full-band ballistic non-equilibrium Green's function simulations with an atomistic tight-binding Hamiltonian with hopping potentials obtained from density functional theory. We discuss the subthreshold slope, drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL), as well as gate-induced drain leakage (GIDL) for different monolayer MX2 MOSFETs. We also report the possibility of negative differential resistance behavior in the output characteristics o…
In this article, we investigate electrical transport properties in ultrathin body (UTB) MoS2 two-dimensional (2D) crystals with channel lengths ranging from 2 μm down to 50 nm. We compare the short channel behavior of sets of MOSFETs with various channel thickness, and reveal the superior immunity to short channel effects of MoS2 transistors. We observe no obvious short channel effects on the device with 100 nm channel length (Lch) fabricated on a 5 nm thick MoS2 2D crystal even when using 300 nm thick SiO2 as gate dielectric, and has a current on/off ratio up to ~109. We also observe the on-c…
Three-dimensional (3-D) topological insulators (TI) are characterized by the presence of metallic surface states and a bulk band gap. Recently theoretical and experimental studies have shown an induced gap in the surface state bands of TI thin films. The gap results from interaction of conduction band (CB) and valence band (VB) surface states from the opposite surfaces of a thin film, and its size is determined by the film thickness. This gap formation could open the possibility of thin-film TI-based metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs). Here we explore the performance …
This paper examines the performance degradation of a MOS device fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) due to the undesirable short-channel effects (SCE) as the channel length is scaled to meet the increasing demand for high-speed high-performing ULSI applications. The review assesses recent proposals to circumvent the SCE in SOI MOSFETs and a short evaluation of strengths and weaknesses specific to each attempt is presented. A new device structure called the dual-material gate (DMG) SOI MOSFET is discussed and its efficacy in suppressing SCEs such as drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL), c…
The general theory for quantum simulation of cubic semiconductor n-MOSFETs is presented within the effective mass equation approach. The full three-dimensional transport problem is described in terms of coupled transverse subband modes which arise due to quantum confinement along the body thickness direction. Couplings among the subbands are generated for two reasons: due to spatial variations of the confinement potential along the transport direction, and due to non-alignment of the device coordinate system with the principal axes of the constant energy conduction band ellipsoids. The problem…
In this article, we present a configurable field-effect transistor (FET), where not only polarity (n- and p-type), but the conduction mechanism of a FET can also be configured dynamically. As a result, we can have both types of devices, high-performance MOSFET and low-power TFET, for computational and power efficient system on chip (SoC) products. The calibrated 3D-TCAD simulation results validate characteristics and functionalities of the configurable FET, and showed good consistency with the static conventional MOSFET (or TFET).
In this paper, we present the unique features exhibited by modified asymmetrical Double Gate (DG) silicon on insulator (SOI) MOSFET. The proposed structure is similar to that of the asymmetrical DG SOI MOSFET with the exception that the front gate consists of two materials. The resulting modified structure, Dual Material Double Gate (DMDG) SOI MOSFET, exhibits significantly reduced short channel effects when compared with the DG SOI MOSFET. Short channel effects in this structure have been studied by developing an analytical model. The model includes the calculation of the surface potential, e…
Field-effect transistors based on band-to-band tunneling (BTBT) have gained a lot of recent interest due to their potential for reducing power dissipation in integrated circuits. In this paper we present a detailed performance comparison between conventional n-i-n MOSFET transistors, and BTBT transistors based on the p-i-n geometry (p-i-n TFET), using semiconducting carbon nanotubes as the model channel material. Quantum transport simulations are performed using the nonequilibrium Green's function formalism including realistic phonon scattering. We find that the TFET can indeed produce subthre…
We investigate the design of steep-slope metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) exploiting monolayers of transition metal dihalides as channel materials. With respect to other previously proposed steep-slope transistors, these devices require simplified manufacturing processes, as no confinement of the 2D material is needed, nor any tunneling heterojunction or ferroelectric gate insulators, and only n- or p-type contacts are demanded. We demonstrate their operation by studying an implementation based on monolayer CrI$_2$ through quantum transport simulations. We show that…
We study the transport properties of deeply scaled monolayer MoS2 n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs) using full-band ballistic quantum transport simulations with an atomistic tight-binding Hamiltonian obtained from density functional theory. Our simulations suggest that monolayer MoS2 MOSFETs can provide near-ideal subthreshold slope, and suppression of drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL) and gate-induced drain leakage (GIDL). However, these full-band simulations also exhibit limited transconductance. These ballistic simulations also exhibit negative diffe…
We investigate the scattering of a wave packet describing low-energy electrons in graphene by a time-dependent finite step potential barrier. Our results demonstrate that, after Klein tunneling through the barrier, the electron acquires an extra energy which depends on the rate of change the barrier height in time. If such a rate is negative, the electron loses energy and ends up as a valence band state after leaving the barrier, which effectively behaves as a positively charged quasi-particle
A new analytical model based on the WKB approximation for MOSFET-like one-dimensional ballistic transistors with Schottky-Barrier contacts has been developed for the drain current. By using a proper approximation of both the Fermi-Dirac distribution function and transmission probability, an analytical solution for the Landauer integral was obtained, which overcomes the limitations of existing models and extends their applicability toward high bias voltages needed for analog applications. The simulations of transfer and output characteristics are found to be in agreement with the experimental d…
The so-called Boltzmann Tyranny defines the fundamental thermionic limit of the subthreshold slope (SS) of a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) at 60 mV/dec at room temperature and, therefore, precludes the lowering of the supply voltage and the overall power consumption. Adding a ferroelectric negative capacitor to the gate stack of a MOSFET may offer a promising solution to bypassing this fundamental barrier. Meanwhile, two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors, such as atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) due to their low dielectric constant, and ease of…
Newly emerged materials from the family of Heuslers and complex oxides exhibit finite bandgaps and ferromagnetic behavior with Curie temperatures much higher than even room temperature. In this work, using the semiclassical top-of-the-barrier FET model, we explore the operation of a spin-MOSFET that utilizes such ferromagnetic semiconductors as channel materials, in addition to ferromagnetic source/drain contacts. Such a device could retain the spin polarization of injected electrons in the channel, the loss of which limits the operation of traditional spin transistors with non-ferromagnetic c…
We report an investigation of electron conduction in oligophenyl based double barrier molecular device. We have carried out analytical calculations and numerical simulations on isolated molecules, consisting of aromatic "pi" conjugated system made up of three phenyl rings separated by insulator groups -CH_{2}-, -SiH_{2}-, -GeH_{2}- and -SnH_{2}-. We show analytically as well as numerically that when the two insulator groups are different an asymmetric electron transport in the presence of external electric field is possible,thus resembling a diode which allows one way electron transport.
A spin metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistor (spin MOSFET), which combines a Schottky-barrier MOSFET with ferromagnetic source and drain contacts, is a promising device for spintronic logic. Previous simulation studies predict that this device should display a very high magnetoresistance (MR) ratio (between the cases of parallel and anti-parallel magnetizations) for the case of half-metal ferromagnets (HMF). We use the non-equilibrium Green's function (NEGF) formalism to describe tunneling and carrier transport in this device and to incorporate spin relaxation at the HMF-semiconduc…
In our previous papers on ballistic quantum transport in nano-transistors [J. Appl. Phys. 98, 84308 (2005)] it was demonstrated that under certain conditions it is possible to reduce the three-dimensional transport problem to an effectively one-dimensional one. We show that such an effectively one-dimensional description can be cast in a scale-invariant form. We obtain dimensionless variables for the characteristic channel length $l$ and width of the transistor which determine the scale-invariant output characteristic. For $l \gtrsim 10$, in the strong barrier regime, the output characteristic…
The scaling behaviors of graphene nanoribbon (GNR) Schottky barrier field-effect transistors (SBFETs) are studied by solving the non-equilibrium Green's function (NEGF) transport equation in an atomistic basis set self-consistently with a three-dimensional Poisson equation. The armchair edge GNR channel shares similarities with a zigzag CNT, but it has a different geometry and quantum confinement boundary condition in the transverse direction. The results indicate that the I-V characteristics are ambipolar and strongly depend on the GNR width because the bandgap of the GNR is approximately inv…
Cold source field-effect transistor with type-III band-aligned HfS$_2$/WTe$_2$ heterostructure
College of Physics and Electronic Engineering and Center for Computational Sciences, Sichuan Normal University（四川师范大学物理与电子工程学院及计算科学中心）；Centre for the Physics of Materials and Department of Physics, McGill University（麦吉尔大学材料物理中心及物理系）；School of Integrated Circuit, Peking University（北京大学集成电路学院）；Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Integrated Circuits（北京集成电路先进创新中心）；College of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University（深圳大学物理与光电工程学院）
Transmission of electrons across a rectangular barrier of IV-VI semiconductor compounds is considered. Conduction electrons arrive at the barrier and are reflected or transmitted through it depending on the relative values of the barrier potential $V_b$ and the electron energy $E$. The theory, in close analogy to the Dirac four component spinors, accounts for the boundary conditions on both sides of the barrier. The calculated transmission coefficient $T_C$ is an oscillatory function of the barrier voltage varying between zero (for full electron reflection) and unity (for full electron transmi…
We propose a model for partially ballistic MOSFETs and for channel backscattering that is alternative to the well known Lundstrom model and is more accurate from the point of view of the actual energy distribution of carriers. The key point is that we do not use the concept of "virtual source". Our model differs from the Lundstrom model in two assumptions: i) the reflection coefficients from the top of the energy barrier to the drain and from top of the barrier to the source are approximately equal (whereas in the Lundstrom model the latter is zero), and ii) inelastic scattering is assumed thr…
We show that the arguments in the posting cond-mat/0607432 by Flatte and Hall are flawed and untenable. Their spin based transistor cannot work as claimed because of fundamental scientific barriers, which cannot be overcome now, or ever. Their device is not likely to work as a transistor at room temperature, let alone outperform the traditional MOSFET, as claimed.
We performed a comprehensive scaling study of Schottky barrier carbon nanotube transistors using self-consistent, atomistic scale simulations. We restrict our attention to Schottky barrier carbon nanotube FETs whose metal source/drain is attached to an intrinsic carbon nanotube channel. Ambipolar conduction is found to be an important factor that must be carefully considered in device design, especially when the gate oxide is thin. The channel length scaling limit imposed by source-drain tunneling is found to be between 5nm and 10nm, depending on the off-current specification. Using a large di…
This work evaluates the performance of carbon nanotube field effect transistors (CNTFET) using few layer graphene as the contact electrode material. We present the experimental results obtained on the barrier height at CNT graphene junction using temperature dependent IV measurements. The estimated barrier height in our devices for both holes and electrons is close to zero or slightly negative indicating the Ohmic contact of graphene with the valence and conduction bands of CNTs. In addition, we also report that there is no correlation between the barrier height and thickness of graphene.
The electrical performance of a tunnel field-effect transistor depends critically on the band offset at their semiconductor heterojunction interface. Historically, it has been difficult to experimentally determine how the electronic bands align at the heterojunction interface. We report here on experimental methods to ascertain a complete energy band alignment of a broken-gap tunnel field-effect transistor based on an InAs/GaSb hetero-junction. By using graphene as an optically transparent electrode in a traditional internal photoemission measurement, both the electron and hole barrier heights…
We report on a new computational model to efficiently simulate carbon nanotubebased field effect transistors (CNT-FET). In the model, a central region is formed by a semiconducting nanotube that acts as the conducting channel, surrounded by a thin oxide layer and a metal gate electrode. At both ends of the semiconducting channel, two semi-infinite metallic reservoirs act as source and drain contacts. The current-voltage characteristics are computed using the Landauer formalism, including the effect of the Schottky barrier physics. The main operational regimes of the CNT-FET are described, incl…
The electrical contact to two-dimensional (2D)-semiconductor materials are decisive to the electronic performance of 2D-semiconductor field-effect devices (FEDs). The presence of a Schottky barrier often leads to a large contact resistance, which seriously limits the channel conductance and carrier mobility measured in a two-terminal geometry. In contrast, ohmic contact is desirable and can be achieved by the presence of a nonrectifying or tunneling barrier. Here, we demonstrate that an nonrectifying barrier can be realized by contacting indium (In), a low work function metal, with layered InS…
A general solution for the electrostatic potential in an atomic-thin-body (ATB) field-effect transistor geometry is presented. The effective electrostatic scaling length, λeff, is extracted from the analytical model, which cannot be approximated by the lowest order eigenmode as traditionally done in SOI-MOSFETs. An empirical equation for the scaling length that depends on the geometry parameters is proposed. It is shown that even for a thick SiO2 back oxide λeff can be improved efficiently by thinner top oxide thickness, and to some extent, with high-k dielectrics. The model is then applied to…
