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| Author(s): |
Henrique Lanza Faria Torres
Total Authors: 1
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| Document type: | Master's Dissertation |
| Press: | São Paulo. |
| Institution: | Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Escola Politécnica (EP/BC) |
| Defense date: | 2018-05-28 |
| Examining board members: |
Paula Ghedini Der Agopian;
Henri Ivanov Boudinov;
Salvador Pinillos Gimenez
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| Advisor: | Paula Ghedini Der Agopian; João Antonio Martino |
| Abstract | |
In light of the increasing need for new technologies to be able to operate reliably in harsh environments, the analysis of the effects of ionizing radiation on semiconductor devices has become a continually rising field of research, contributing to the development of strategic technologies and promoting scientific improvement and technological development of humankind. On the other hand, the current CMOS technology for the manufacture of integrated circuits shows signs of limitation, mostly, due to the physical characteristics inherent to its operating principle, thus, it is necessary that devices with new operating mechanisms and geometries be developed. Among them, tunnel field-effect transistors (TFET) stand out because of its lower OFF state current and the possibility of reaching subthreshold swing below the theoretical limit established by MOSFET devices of 60 mV/dec at room temperature, allowing to reduce transistors supply voltage to about 0.5 V. In order to contribute with both areas, the behavior of silicon based triple gate TFETs fabricated on a SOI (silicon-on-insulator) substrate and exposed to a total cumulative dose of 10 Mrad (Si) (while not biased) generated by a 600 keV proton beam was analyzed. In an initial analysis after exposure of 1 µm width devices to 1 Mrad(Si), it was possible to observe an ON state current reduction (ION ? 300 pA) up to 10%, not associated to a gate current change. Beyond that, irradiation effects on these devices reduce from 10% to 2% with the channel length increasing from 150 nm to 1 µm. The reasons behind these phenomena were discussed based on the competition between a high channel resistance present in longer devices and the TFET drain current reduction due to the irradiation. For a total cumulative dose analysis, triple gate SOI TFET and triple gate SOI MOSFET devices were characterized 14 days after each irradiation phase. In general, devices of both technologies, with 40 nm fin width, presented low susceptibility to the cumulative effects of ionizing radiation. However, for devices with fin width larger than fin height (WFIN = 1 µm) in which the influence of side gates on the electrostatic coupling of the channel is weak, tunnel-FET transistors have stood out. These devices were resistant to the effects of total ionizing dose (TID) even for doses as high as 5 Mrad(Si), while SOI MOSFET transistors showed a gradual variation of their parameters at each accumulated dose. The variation observed for the subthreshold swing, for example, was about 32.5% for SOI MOSFET devices and 5.6% for SOI TFET devices. TFETs with wider fin have shown significant variations on its transfer characteristic (ID x VG) only after 10 Mrad(Si) of proton irradiation. For both P-type and N-type configurations, it was observed a shift of the transfer curve to the left up to 80 mV caused by, according to simulations, the positive fixed charges generated in the buried oxide by irradiation. In addition, it was possible to observe a trap assisted tunneling (TAT) current increase caused by interface states promoted by TID effects. The increase of TAT was recognized as the main responsible for the degradation of 23.3% of the subthreshold swing of the TFETs after 10 Mrad(Si). In spite of the observed changes, it was possible to suggest, through comparison with SOI MOSFET devices of equivalent dimensions, which tunnel field-effect transistors may become a reference when considering immunity against total ionizing dose effects. (AU) | |
| FAPESP's process: | 15/24817-1 - Radiation effects on triple-gate tunnel-FETs transistors |
| Grantee: | Henrique Lanza Faria Torres |
| Support Opportunities: | Scholarships in Brazil - Master |