The role of the Ge mole fraction in improving the performance of a nanoscale junctionless tunneling FET: concept and scaling capability

Abstract

In this paper, a new nanoscale double-gate junctionless tunneling field-effect transistor (DG-JL TFET) based on a Si1−xGex/Si/Ge heterojunction (HJ) structure is proposed to achieve an improved electrical performance. The effect of introducing the Si1−xGex material at the source side on improving the subthreshold behavior of the DG-JL TFET and on suppressing ambipolar conduction is investigated. Moreover, the impact of the Ge mole fraction in the proposed Si1−xGex source region on the electrical figures of merit (FoMs) of the transistor, including the swing factor and the ION/IOFF ratio is analyzed. It is found that the optimized design with 60 atom % of Ge offers improved switching behavior and enhanced derived current capability at the nanoscale level, with a swing factor of 42 mV/dec and an ION/IOFF ratio of 115 dB. Further, the scaling capability of the proposed Si1−xGex/Si/Ge DG-HJ-JL TFET structure is investigated and compared to that of a conventional Ge-DG-JL TFET design, where the optimized design exhibits an improved switching behavior at the nanoscale level. These results make the optimized device suitable for designing digital circuit for high-performance nanoelectronic applications.

Keywords

• ambipolar conduction
• heterojunctions
• junctionless tunneling field-effect transistor (JL TFET)
• nanoscale
• SiGe