Comprehensive Analysis and Optimal Design of Ge/GeSn/Ge p-n-p Infrared Heterojunction Phototransistors

Abstract

We present a comprehensive analysis of practical p-n-p Ge/Ge1-xSnx/Ge heterojunction phototransistors (HPTs) for design optimization for efficient infrared detection. Our design includes a Ge1-xSnx narrow-bandgap semiconductor as the active layer in the base layer, enabling extension of the photodetection range from near-infrared to mid-infrared to perform wide-range infrared detection. We calculate the current gain, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and optical responsivity and investigate their dependences on the structural parameters to optimize the proposed Ge1-xSnx p-n-p HPTs. The results show that the SNR is strongly dependent on the operation frequency and that the introduction of Sn into the base layer can improve the SNR in the high-frequency region. In addition, the current gain strongly depends on the Sn content in the Ge1-xSnx base layer, and a Sn content of 6%-9% maximizes the optical responsivity achievable in the infrared range. These results provide useful guidelines for designing and optimizing practical p-n-p Ge1-xSnx HPTs for high-performance infrared photodetection.

Keywords

• GeSn alloys
• current gain
• sign-to-noise ratio
• heterojunction phototransistors
• infrared