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It has recently been suggested that ferroelectric (FE) negative capacitance effects can be used to achieve steep subthreshold slope field-effect transistors, which are greatly desired for reducing energy consumption in modern digital electronics. Here, we propose that this concept can be improved by the introduction of a very thin metal or metal-like layer (a quantum metal) between the FE and the semiconductor channel. We show how to design this layer so that it attenuates the polarization charge of the FE, applying an appropriate charge to the semiconductor, while at the same time presenting a relatively constant capacitance to the FE layer, as is needed to stabilize the negative capacitance regime. For homogeneous polarization, we estimate that this device (a QMFeFET) can have extremely steep subthreshold characteristics (2 mV/decade over 11 decades) and that its energy and delay performance are advantageous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experimental-modeling investigation of the transient thermal crosstalk between the field-effect transistors implemented on a silicon-on-insulator substrate is reported. The measurements were performed using a high-speed electrical pulse—probe sampling technique, which allowed detection of thermally modulated subthreshold currents. The technique achieved a temperature resolution of ∼50 mK, a time resolution of 5 ns, and a temperature sensitivity of ∼0.6 μA/K. The finite-element method was used to solve the heat diffusion equation and to obtain the temperature profiles for the given device structures. The combined high-resolution experimental—simulation approach allowed the study of the thermal crosstalk between two adjacent devices and probe the local temperature at different locations of the structure. The effects of the interface quality, layer thickness, material selection, and interdevice spacing on the heat diffusion and device performance were investigated in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various nonplanar, multigate field-effect transistors (FET) structures have been reported that offer better gate con- trol than planar MOSFETs. In the nanometer regime, however, multigate (nanowire) structures also suffer strong quantum con- finement, which causes deleterious effects such as large threshold voltage variation. In this paper, we propose a general approach to compare planar versus nonplanar FETs with the consideration of both electrostatic integrity (gate control) and quantum confinement (the so-called "EQ approach"). With this EQ approach, we show that the cylindrical wire FET and the planar double-gate MOSFET have approximately equal scaling capability for a (001)-oriented wafer, while the nonplanar wire structures are significantly better for other wafer orientations [e.g., (011)] where the effective mass in the confinement direction of the planar MOSFET is relatively small. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silicon nanowire (SiNW) field-effect transistors (SiNWFETs) are of great potential as a high-sensitivity charge sensor. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of an SiNWFET sensor is ultimately limited by the intrinsic device noise generated by carrier trapping/detrapping processes at the gate oxide/silicon interface. This carrier trapping/detrapping-induced noise can be significantly reduced by replacing the noisy oxide/silicon interface with a Schottky junction gate (SJG) on the top of the SiNW. In this paper, we present a tri-SJG SiNWFET (Tri-SJGFET) with the SJG formed on both the top surface and the two sidewalls of the SiNW so as to enhance the gate control over the SiNW channel. Both experiment and simulation confirm that the additional sidewall gates in a narrow Tri-SJGFET indeed can confine the conduction path within the bulk of the SiNW channel away from the interfaces and significantly improve the immunity to the traps at the bottom buried oxide/silicon interface. Therefore, the optimal low-frequency noise performance can be achieved without the need for any substrate bias. This new gating structure holds promises for further development of robust SiNWFET-based charge sensors with low noise and low operation voltage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferroelectric and negative-capacitance field-effect transistors (FeFETs and NCFETs) have recently garnered great attention as devices for applications in memory and low-power logic, respectively. As these technologies are pursued, it is critical to have a variety of measurement approaches, including methods familiar to the electron-device and microwave communities that can aid in fully understanding the behavior of ferroelectrics in FeFETs and NCFETs. In this paper, we propose and show the viability of using frequency-domain electrical measurement techniques employing the well-known microwave S-parameters, and their large-signal generalization and X-parameters. Our methods provide the means to trace the intrinsic polarization versus electric-field curve of the ferroelectric, i.e., with the parasitics de-embedded, thereby showing the innate ferroelectric response, which cannot be done using conventional techniques. These methods also enable extraction of all the parameters of the Landau–Khalatnikov equation, which is commonly used to model ferroelectric behavior in FeFETs and NCFETs. This paper hence takes a useful step toward methods familiar to the electron-device community that can help to better understand and optimize FeFET and NCFET technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]