Improved strained HEMT characteristics using double-heterojunctionIn0.65Ga0.35As/In0.52Al0.48As design

The DC and microwave properties of strained In_0.65Ga _0.35As/In₀₅₂Al_0.48As HEMTs (high electron-mobility transistors) with double-heterojunction design are presented. The high sheet carrier density and good carrier confinement give rise to excellent device performance with very low output conductance. For 1×150-μm² long-gate HEMTs, the measured cutoff frequency f_T and maximum frequency of oscillation f_max are as high as 37 and 66 GHz, respectively     

0.2-μm gate-length atomic-planar doped pseudomorphic Al0.3Ga0.7As/In0.25Ga0.75As MODFETswith fT over 120 GHz

The authors report the DC and RF performance of nominally 0.2-μm-gate length atomic-planar doped pseudomorphic Al_0.3Ga_0.7As/In_0.25Ga_0.75As modulation-doped field-effect transistors (MODFETs) with f_T over 120 GHz. The devices exhibit a maximum two-dimensional electron gas (2 DEG) sheet density of 2.4×10¹² cm^-2, peak transconductance g _m of 530-570 mS/mm. maximum current density of 500-550 mA/mm, and peak current-gain cutoff frequency f_T of 110-122 GHz. These results are claimed to be among the best ever reported for pseudomorphic AlGaAs/InGaAs MODFETs and are attributed to the high 2 DEG sheet density, rather than an enhanced saturation velocity, in the In_0.25Ga_0.75As channel     

In0.52Al0.48As/InxGa1-xAs (0.53⩽x⩽0.70) lattice-matched and strainedheterostructure insulated-gate FETs

The DC and microwave properties of In_0.52Al_0.48 Al/In_xGa_1-xAs (0.53⩽x⩽0.70) heterostructure insulated gate field-effect transistors (HIGFETs) with a quantum well channel design are presented. DC and microwave transconductances (g_m) are enhanced as the In content is increased in the InGaAs channel. An intrinsic microwave g _m value of 428 mS/mm and a K-factor of 1140 mS/mm-V have been obtained for 1.0-μm gate length with the 65% In channel devices. The sheet charge density, drift mobility, transconductance, current-gain cutoff frequency (f_T), and maximum oscillation frequency (f _max) all show a continuous improvement up to 65% In content ( f_T=22.5 GHz with 53% and f_T=27 GHz with 65% In; the corresponding f_max change is from 6.5 to 8 GHz). The device performance degrades as the In content is increased to 70%. DC and microwave characteristics show the presence of negative differential resistance (NDR) up to 2.7 GHz     

In0.52Al0.48As/In0.53Ga0.47As MSM photodetectors and HEMT's grown by MOCVD on GaAs substrates

The authors report the first demonstration of In_0.52Al _0.48As/In_0.53Ga_0.47As metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodetectors and high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) grown on GaAs substrates by organometallic chemical vapor deposition. Both photodetectors and transistors showed no degradation in performance compared to devices simultaneously grown on InP substrates. The photodetectors exhibited a responsivity of 0.45 A/W and leakage current of 10 to 50 nA. The HEMTs with a gate length of 1.0 μm showed a transconductance as high as 250 mS/mm, and f_T and f_max of 25 and 70 GHz, respectively     

A pseudomorphic AlGaAs/n+-InGaAs metal-insulator-dopedchannel FET for broad-band, large-signal applications

Molecular beam epitaxy (MBE)-grown L_g=1.7-μm pseudomorphic Al_0.38Ga_0.62As/n⁺-In_0.15Ga _0.85As metal-insulator-doped channel FETs (MIDFETs) are presented that display extremely broad plateaus in both f_T and f_max versus V_GS, with f_T sustaining 90% of its peak over a gate swing of 2.6 V. Drain current is highly linear with V_GS over this swing, reaching 514 mA/mm. No frequency dispersion in g _m up to 3 GHz was found, indicating the absence of electrically active traps in the undoped AlGaAs pseudoinsulator layer. These properties combine to make the pseudomorphic MIDFET highly suited to linear, large-signal, broadband applications     

0.33-μm gate-length millimeter-wave InP-channel HEMTs with highf1 and fmax

The fabrication of 0.33-μm gate-length AlInAs/InP high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) is reported. These InP-channel devices have f_t values as high as 76 GHz, f_max values of 146 GHz, and maximum stable gains of 16.8, 14, and 12 dB at 10, 18, and 30 GHz, respectively. The extrinsic DC transconductances are as high as 610 mS/mm; with drain-source breakdown voltages exceeding 10 V. The effective electron velocity in the InP channel is estimated to be at least 1.8×10⁷ cm/s, while the f_tL_g product is 29 GHz-μm. These results are comparable to the best reported results for similar InGaAs-channel devices     

High/fmax collector-up AlGaAs/GaAsheterojunction bipolar transistors with a heavily carbon-doped basefabricated using oxygen-ion implantation

AlGaAs/GaAs collector-up heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) with a heavily carbon-doped base layer were fabricated using oxygen-ion implantation and zinc diffusion. The high resistivity of the oxygen-ion-implanted AlGaAs layer in the external emitter region effectively suppressed electron injection from the emitter, allowing collector current densities to reach values above 10⁵ A/cm ². For a transistor with a 2-μm×10-μm collector, f_T was 70 GHz and f_max was as high as 128 GHz. It was demonstrated by on-wafer measurements that the first power performance of collector-up HBTs resulted in a maximum power-added efficiency of as high as 63.4% at 3 GHz     

Importance of source and drain resistance to the maximum fT of millimeter-wave MODFETs

The usual approximate expression for measured f_T =[g_m/2π (C_gs+C _gd)] is inadequate. At low drain voltages just beyond the knee of the DC I-V curves, where intrinsic f _t is a maximum for millimeter-wave MODFETs, the high values of C_gd and G_ds combine with the high g_m to make terms involving the source and drain resistance significant. It is shown that these resistances can degrade the measured f_T of a 0.30-μm GaAs-AlGaAs MODFET from an intrinsic maximum f_T value of 73 GHz to a measured maximum value of 59 GHz. The correct extraction of maximum f_T is essential for determining electron velocity and optimizing low-noise performance     

89-GHz fT room-temperature silicon MOSFETs

The authors report the implementation of deep-submicrometer Si MOSFETs that at room temperature have a unity-current-gain cutoff frequency (f_T) of 89 GHz, for a drain-to-source bias of 1.5 V, a gate-to-source bias of 1 V, a gate oxide thickness of 40 Å, and a channel length of 0.15 μm. The fabrication procedure is mostly conventional, except for the e-beam defined gates. The speed performance is achieved through an intrinsic transit time of only 1.8 ps across the active device region     

A deep-submicrometer microwave/digital CMOS/SOS technology

0.35-μm complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)/silicon-on-sapphire (SOS) n- and p-channel MOSFETs with a metal-over-polysilicon T-gate structure for monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) and digital applications are reported. The measured values for the current-gain cutoff frequency f_T were ⩾20 GHz for both n-channel and p-channel devices, and the values for the unilateral power-gain cutoff frequency f_max were 37 GHz for the p-channel and 53 GHz for the n-channel MOSFETs. The low effective resistance of the T-gate structure contributed to the very high f_max values. It is believed that these are the highest f_T and f_max values ever reported for MOS devices. The potential of SOS submicrometer MOSFETs for microwave circuit applications is demonstrated     

Si/a-Si:H heterojunction microwave bipolar transistors with cut-offfrequencies ft above 5 GHz

The fabrication of a silicon heterojunction microwave bipolar transistor with an n⁺ a-Si:H emitter is discussed, and experimental results are given. The device provides a base sheet resistance of 2 kΩ/□ a base width 0.1 μm, a maximum current gain of 21 (V_CE=6 V, I_c=15 mA), and an emitter Gummel number G _E of about 1.4×10¹⁴ Scm^-4. From the measured S parameters, a cutoff frequency f_t of 5.5 GHz and maximum oscillating frequency f_max of 7.5 GHz at V_CE=10 V, I_c=10 mA are obtained     

Reconciliation of methods for estimating fmaxfor microwave heterojunction transistors

An attempt is made to reconcile the various approaches that have recently been used to estimate the maximum frequency of oscillation f_max in high-performance AlGaAs/GaAs HBTs. f_max is computed numerically from the full expression for Mason's invariant gain using y-parameters derived from the different approaches, i.e., the hybrid-π equivalent circuit, the T-equivalent circuit, and the drift-diffusion equations. It is shown that the results for f_max are essentially the same, irrespective of the source of the y-parameters, provided that the phase delays due to transit of carriers across the base and the collector-base depletion region are properly accounted for. It is also shown, for the particular device studied, that the widely used analytical expression for f_max, involving f _T and effective base resistance and collector capacitance, is remarkably accurate for frequencies below those at which transit-time effects become important     

75-GHz fT SiGe-base heterojunction bipolartransistors

The fabrication of silicon heterojunction bipolar transistors which have a record unity-current-gain cutoff frequency (f_T) of 75 GHz for a collector-base bias of 1 V, an intrinsic base sheet resistance (R_bi) of 17 kΩ/□, and an emitter width of 0.9 μm is discussed. This performance level, which represents an increase by almost a factor of 2 in the speed of a Si bipolar transistor, was achieved in a poly-emitter bipolar process by using SiGe for the base material. The germanium was graded in the 45-nm base to create a drift field of approximately 20 kV/cm, resulting in an intrinsic transit time of only 1.9 ps     

Low-temperature microwave characteristics of pseudomorphic InxGa1-xAs/In0.52Al0.48Asmodulation-doped field-effect transistors

Low-temperature microwave measurements of both lattice-matched and pseudomorphic In_xGa_1-xAs/In_0.48As (x=0.53, 0.60, and 0.70) channel MODFETs on InP substrates were carried out in a cryogenic measurement system. The measurements were done in the temperature range of 77 to 300 K and in the frequency range of 0.5 to 11.0 GHz at different bias conditions. The cutoff frequency ( f_T) for the In_xGa_1-xAs/In_0.52Al_0.48As MODFETs improved from 22 to 29 GHz, 29 to 38 GHz, and 39 to 51 GHz, for x=0.53, 0.60, and 0.70, respectively, as the temperature was lowered from 300 to 77 K, which is approximately a 31% increase at each composition. No degradations were observed in device performance. These results indicate an excellent potential of the pseudomorphic devices at low temperatures     

W-band low-noise InAlAs/InGaAs lattice-matched HEMTs

Very low-noise 0.15-μm gate-length W-band In_0.52 Al_0.48As/In_0.53Ga_0.47As/In _0.52Al_0.48As/InP lattice-matched HEMTs are discussed. A maximum extrinsic transconductance of 1300 mS/mm has been measured for the device. At 18 GHz, a noise figure of 0.3 dB with an associated gain of 17.2 dB was measured. The device also exhibited a minimum noise figure of 1.4 dB with 6.6-dB associated gain at 93 GHz. A maximum available gain of 12.6 dB at 95 GHz, corresponding to a maximum frequency of oscillation, f_max, of 405 GHz (-6-dB/octave extrapolation) in the device was measured. These are the best device results yet reported. These results clearly demonstrate the potential of the InP-based HEMTs for low-noise applications, at least up to 100 GHz     

Design and experimental characteristics of strained In0.52Al0.48As/InxGa1-xAs (x>0.53)HEMTs

Strained In_0.52Al_0.48 As/In_xGa _1-xAs (x>0.53) HEMTs (high electron mobility transistors) are studied theoretically and experimentally. A device design procedure is reported that is based on band structure and charge control self-consistent calculations. It predicts the sheet carrier density and electron confinement as a function of doping and thickness of layers. The DC performance at 300 K is presented. Wafer statistics demonstrate improvement of device characteristics with excess indium in the channel (g¯_{m, intr}=500 and 700 mS/mm for x=0.60 and 0.65). Microwave characterization shows the f_T improvement (f_T=40 and 45 GHz for x=0.60 and 0.65, respectively) and the R_ds limitations of the 1-μm-long-gate HEMTs     

Quarter-micrometer gate ion-implanted GaAs MESFET's with an f1 of 126 GHz

The fabrication and characterization of a 0.25-μm-gate, ion-implanted GaAs MESFET with a maximum current-gain cutoff frequency f_t of 126 GHz is reported. Extrapolation of current gains from bias-dependent S-parameters at 70-100% of I _dss yields f₁'s of 108-126 GHz. It is projected that an f₁ of 320 GHz is achievable with 0.1-μm-gate GaAs MESFETs. This demonstration of f₁'s over 100 GHz with practical 0.25-μm gate length substantially advances the high-frequency operation limits of short-gate GaAs MESFETs     

High-speed Al0.2Ga0.8As/GaAsmulti-quantum-well phototransistors with tunable spectral response

The authors have measured the high-frequency characteristics and temporal response of a GaAs/AlGaAs heterojunction phototransistor with a GaAs/Al_0.2Ga_0.8 multi-quantum-well collector. The quantum wells offer tunability of the photoresponse (10 nm for a bias change of 4 V) and a negative differential resistance in the photocurrent-voltage characteristics. Measured values of f_T and f_max are 20 and 6 GHz, respectively. The temporal response to short-pulse optical excitation is characterized by a linewidth of 46 ps. Such devices are attractive candidates for making optically induced oscillators     

Doubly strainedIn0.41Al0.59As/n+-In0.65Ga0.35As HFET with high breakdown voltage

An In_0.41Al_0.59As/n⁺-In_0.65 Ga_0.35As HFET on InP was designed and fabricated, using the following methodology to enhance device breakdown: a quantum-well channel to introduce electron quantization and increase the effective channel bandgap, a strained In_0.41Al_0.59As insulator, and the elimination of parasitic mesa-sidewall gate leakage. The In_0.65Ga_0.35As channel is optimally doped to N_D=6×10¹⁸ cm^-3. The resulting device (L_g=1.9 μm, W_g =200 μm) has f_t=14.9 GHz, f_max in the range of 85 to 101 GHz, MSG=17.6 dB at 12 GHz V_B=12.8 V, and I_D(max)=302 mA/mm. This structure offers the promise of high-voltage applications at high frequencies on InP     

High-performance highly strainedGa0.23In0.77As/Al0.48In0.52As MODFET's obtained by selective and shallow etch guide recesstechniques

Record high f_TL_g products of 57 and 46 GHz-μm have been achieved in Ga_1-x In_x As/AlInAs MODFETs with a strain compensated channel of x=0.77 and a lattice-matched channel of x=0.53, respectively. Although g_m as high as 950 mS/mm has been obtained by conventional deep recess for the gate, these latter devices show a prominent kink effect which lowers f_T and the voltage gain. By limiting the depth of final nonselective recess etch to 3 nm with the help of selective step etches, f_T as high as 47 GHz and g_m as high as 843 mS/mm have been achieved for MODFETs with x=0.77 and L_g=1.1 μm