EDID632C
Elementary studies: Transistor
fundamentals
Quick review of semiconductor physics
Essentials of semiconductor physics
1. Energy bands
2. Doping
3. Fermi function and Fermi level
4. Carrier densities
5. Drift-diffusion equation
6. Energy band diagrams
7. Quasi-Fermi levels
ng that students are well aware of the above mentioned topics, if not then it is
d to go through the video lectures on “Solid state Devices” by Prof. S Karmalkar, IITM.
the topics are mentioned in my hand written notes that I had already shared with you.
Si Energy levels
Silicon Energy levels/Energy bands
Only the valence states are of interest to us.
• The 8 valence states give rise to 8N atoms states
per cm3 in the solid.
• But the interaction of the electron wavefunctions
alters the discrete energy levels of the isolated Si
atoms.
In a solid, energy levels become energy bands.
Silicon Energy levels Energy bands
Silicon Energy levels Energy bands
Energy band diagrams
Intrinsic silicon
Transistor Fundamentals
Introduction
The MOSFET as a Black Box
MOSFET Device Metrics
Transistors to Circuits
Energy Band View of Transistors
Traditional IV Theory
The “Virtual Source Model”
Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET)
Modern Transistors
There are many kinds of modern transistors:
MOSFET
SOI MOSFET
FinFET
HEMT (MODFET)
JFET
bipolar transistor
heterojunction bipolar transistor
SB FET
BTBT FET
SpinFET
Modern MOSFETs
Modern MOSFETs: FinFETs
III-V FETs: HEMTs and MOSFETs
Course objectives
1. Understand the physical operation of nanoscale transistors.
2. Relate that physical understanding to the IV characteristics.
The MOSFET as Black Box
Silicon MOSFET
The MOSFET as a 2-port device
MOSFET circuit symbol
Common source
current vs. voltage (IV) characteristics
ID (VG, VS, VD )
IV characteristics: Resistor
IV characteristics: Ideal current source
IV characteristics: Transistor (ideal)
IV characteristics: Real current sources
IV characteristics: Transistor (practical)
IV characteristics: Output vs transfer characteristics
N-channel MOSFET vs P-channel MOSFET
MOSFET device metrics: How good is your MOSFET
N-channel enhancement MOSFET
Output characteristics
Output characteristics at a specific VGS
Output characteristics
MOSFET device metrics (i)
RON On resistance
(Ω-μm)
IV characteristics: Output vs transfer characteristics
MOSFET transfer characteristics
MOSFET device metrics (ii)
Subthreshold swing (mV/decade): How many mV increase of VGS is required to increase
the value of ID by a factor of 10.
MOSFET device metrics (iii)
MOSFET device metrics
1. on-current: ION
2. off-current: IOFF
3. subthreshold swing, SS
4. drain induced barrier lowering: DIBL
5. threshold voltage: VT (lin) and VT (sat)
6. Drain to source resistance: RDS
7. drain saturation voltage: VDSAT
8. output resistance: ro
9. transconductance: gm
Given the measured characteristics of a MOSFET, one should be able to
determine:
1. On-current (ION)
2. Off-current (IOFF)
3. Subthresholg swing (SS)
4. Drain induced barrier lowering (DIBL)
5. Threshold voltage: VT (lin) and VT (sat)
6. Drift to source resistance (RDS)
7. Output resistance (ro)
8. Transconductance (gm)
o these device parameters (key device metrics) affect circuit performance??
Energy Band View of MOSFET
Energy band view of MOSFETs
uilibrium Energy band diagram:
ree separate pieces
Energy band view of MOSFETs
Putting the three separate pieces
together (equilibrium)
Final result: one semiconductor
with 3 regions
Energy band diagram under bias
ow gate voltage affects??
A positive gate voltage will increase the electrostatic
potential in the channel and therefore lower the
electron energy in the channel.
The transistor as “Barrier Controlled” device
The transistor as “Barrier Controlled” device
Effect of gate voltage
A small drain voltage is also added
Effect of Drain voltage:
The Fermi Level in the drain is lowered.
The conduction is lowered too, but the electron density stays the same
Traditional IV theory
IV characteristics of MOSFETs
Long channel vs short channel device
Courtesy: A Majumdar, IBM research , 2015
MOSFET: e-band (high VGS, low VDS)
IV characteristics of MOSFETs
MOSFET IV: Low VDS
Mobility here is the effective mobility at the surface.
MOSFET: e-band (high VGS, high VDS)
Under strong control of Gate with weak influence of Drain
For large VDS, the additional voltage
drop appears at the drain end
In a well designed transistor, the height of the energy barrier is mostly controlled by gate voltage
and only weakly controlled by the drain voltage.
MOSFET IV: “pinch-off” at high VDS
“pinch-off” in the channel
Courtesy: David Frank, IBM
MOSFET IV: at high VDS
High VDS : Velocity saturation
MOSFET I-V: Velocity saturation
Velocity overshoot
L= 30 nm
MOSFET I-V recap
Output resistance = slope of the curve
MOSFET IV: 2 piece approximation (recap)
When IDLIN = IDSAT
Intrinsic vs extrinsic voltages
Effect of series resistances
MOS Electrostatics
Topics discussed so far
Introduction
The MOSFET as a Black Box
MOSFET Device Metrics
Transistor to circuits
Energy Band view of Transistors
Traditional IV theory
Topics to be discussed
Introduction
Depletion Approximation
Gate voltage and Surface potential
Flatband voltage
Mobile charge: Bulk MOS
Mobile charge: ETSOI
2D Electrostatics
Electrostatics
electrostaticst
Transport
2D energy band diagram
Poisson’s equation
Can be solved using numerical techniques.
Some approximations (depletion approx.)
make it easier to solve this equation.
g an energy band diagram provides with a qualitative solution to the Poisson equation
Energy band view of MOSFETs
Energy band diagram (review)
Assumptions:
1. Equilibrium
2. Boltzmann carrier statistics
3. Uniform electrostatic potential
Electrostatic potential vs position
The energy bands will bend when the electrostatic potential changes the position.
Band bending
Flat band condition
Applied gate voltage
VG<0 : Accumulation
VG>0 : Depletion
VG=VT : onset of inversion
VG>VT : Inversion
1D MOS electrostatics
depletion/Inversion
Flatband
1D MOS electrostatics
NMOS, PMOS and CMOS Inverter
CMOS INVERTER
2- input NAND gate
Practical CMOS Inverter
CMOS Inverter: Vout vs Vin
CMOS Inverter: Current
CMOS Inverter: noise margins
any input voltage for which we get sufficiently high output, interpreted as logic high
or logic 1
: a high enough input voltage for which we get low output voltage
Importance of gain
slope is -1 then we will not have NM i.e. at the low end/high end, the range of input
e for which output is insensitive to input is not there. Errors will accumulate, can’t
m digital logic on millions of transistors.
CMOS Inverter: Summary
Dynamic performance: power dissipation
i.e., low power requires low voltage
Dynamic performance: speed
i.e., speed is determined
by the ON current
Circuit performance
Power constrained design
Courtesy: David Frank, IBM
