Spin Injection Efficiency at the Source/Channel Interface of Spin Transistors

Almost all spintronic transistors (e.g., spin field-effect transistors, spin bipolar transistors, and spin-enhanced MOSFETs) require high efficiency of spin injection from a ferromagnetic contact into a semiconductor channel for proper operation. In this paper, we calculate the efficiency of spin injection from a realistic nonideal ferromagnetic contact into the semiconductor quantum wire channel of a spintronic transistor, taking into account the presence of an axial magnetic field (caused by either the ferromagnetic contact or external agents) and spin orbit interaction. In our calculations, the temperature is assumed to be low enough that phonon scattering is weak and transport is phase-coherent, although not ballistic because of elastic scattering caused by impurities and defects. We consider a single impurity in the channel and show that the conductance depends strongly on the exact location of this impurity because of quantum mechanical interference effects. This is a nuisance since it exacerbates device variability. The ldquosignrdquo of the impurity potential, i.e., whether it is attractive or repulsive, also influences the channel conductance. Surprisingly, at absolute zero temperature, the spin injection efficiency can reach 100% at certain gate biases, even though the ferromagnetic injector is nonideal. However, this efficiency drops rapidly with increasing temperature.     

Semiconductor quantum devices

The operation of devices with small enough dimensions for electrons to exhibit wavelike behavior is explained. Two types of device are examined: vertical quantum devices, which include the resonant tunneling structure and the single-electron transistor, and lateral, which include the quantum interference transistor and the spin precession device. The advantages and drawbacks of the two types are identified     

Superconductor-semiconductor hybrid devices

The discovery of the cuprate superconducting materials, with critical temperatures exceeding 100 K, has revived interest in hybrid superconductor-semiconductor technology. An elementary definition of a superconductor is given, and superconducting field effect transistors (SuFETs) are presented. The effect of the close proximity of the source and drain electrodes on SuFETs is detailed, and the SuFET operation is explained using the theory of the superconducting proximity effect. Another approach employing an insulating material (such as SrTiO₃ ), using an external gate voltage to induce superconductivity at the surface, is described. New, designs of high-T_c superconductor-semiconductor heterostructures are discussed, including a three terminal resonant tunneling transistor (RTT) making use of high-T _c electrodes. A three-terminal MIS (metal-insulator-superconductor) device using an artificial angle grain boundary (AGB) junction is also discussed. Two types of flux flow transistors (FFTs) are described     

Effects of optical absorption on the quasi-Fermi level splitting atthe emitter-base junction in npn heterojunction bipolar phototransistors

This paper analyzes the effects of optical absorption in the quasi-neutral base region of npn heterojunction bipolar phototransistors (HPT's) on the extent of electron quasi-Fermi level splitting at the emitter-base heterojunction interface. The principle of current balance is used to match the thermionic-field-emission from the emitter with the base electron diffusion current, taking into account the nonuniform optical generation in the base. The increase in minority carrier concentration produced by optical generation in the base leads to a decrease in the quasi-Fermi level splitting at the heterojunction interface which reduces the net electron injection into the base, the emitter injection efficiency and current gain to an extent that depends on the incident optical power and the base-emitter bias     

Influence of surface scattering on the anomalous conductance plateaus in an asymmetrically biased InAs/In(0.52)Al(0.48)As quantum point contact

We study of the appearance and evolution of several anomalous (i.e., G < G(0) D 2e(2)/h) conductance plateaus in an In(0.52)Al(0.48)As/InAs quantum point contact (QPC). This work was performed at T = 4:2 K as a function of the offset bias ΔV(G) between the two in-plane gates of the QPC. The number and location of the anomalous conductance plateaus strongly depend on the polarity of the offset bias. The anomalous plateaus appear only over an intermediate range of offset bias of several volts. They are quite robust, being observed over a maximum range of nearly 1 V for the common sweep voltage applied to the two gates. These results are interpreted as evidence for the sensitivity of the QPC spin polarization to defects (surface roughness and impurity (dangling bond) scattering) generated during the etching process that forms the QPC side walls. This assertion is supported by non-equilibrium Green function simulations of the conductance of a single QPC in the presence of dangling bonds on its walls. Our simulations show that a spin conductance polarization as high as 98% can be achieved despite the presence of dangling bonds. The maximum in is not necessarily reached where the conductance of the channel is equal to 0:5G(0).     

Switching voltage, dynamic power dissipation and on-to-off conductance ratio of a spin field effect transistor

The metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) and high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) implementations of the spin field effect transistor (SpinFET) proposed by Datta and Das are considered. In both configurations, the SpinFET's switching voltage (for switching on or off) and power dissipation are found to be larger than those of the traditional MISFET or HEMT if the channel length is les 90 nm. This is a consequence of the fact that spin orbit interaction strengths in semiconductors are too weak to impart any significant advantage to the SpinFET. The issue of non-ideal spin injection and detection at the source and drain contacts is also considered. The SpinFET's on-to-off conductance ratio rapidly degrades with decreasing spin injection/detection efficiency, dropping from infinity (for a one-dimensional channel) to as low as ~9.5, if the spin injection/detection efficiency drops from 100% to 90%. The transconductance has a quadratic dependence on the spin injection efficiency. These analyses are valid at arbitrary temperatures.     

Observation of extremely long spin relaxation times in an organic nanowire spin valve

Organic semiconductors that are pi-conjugated are emerging as an important platform for 'spintronics', which purports to harness the spin degree of freedom of a charge carrier to store, process and/or communicate information. Here, we report the study of an organic nanowire spin valve device, 50 nm in diameter, consisting of a trilayer of ferromagnetic cobalt, an organic, Alq3, and ferromagnetic nickel. The measured spin relaxation time in the organic is found to be exceptionally long-between a few milliseconds and a second-and it is relatively temperature independent up to 100 K. Our experimental observations strongly suggest that the primary spin relaxation mechanism in the organic is the Elliott-Yafet mode, in which the spin relaxes whenever a carrier scatters and its velocity changes.     

Simulation and design of InAlAs/InGaAs pnp heterojunction bipolartransistors

The performance capabilities of InP-based pnp heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBT's) have been investigated using a drift-diffusion transport model based on a commercial numerical simulator. The low hole mobility in the base is found to limit the current gain and the base transit time, which limits the device's cutoff frequency. The high electron majority carrier mobility in the n⁺ InGaAs base allows a reduction in the base doping and width while maintaining an adequately low base resistance. As a result, high current gain (>300) and power gain (>40 dB) are found to be possible at microwave frequencies. A cutoff frequency as high as 23 GHz and a maximum frequency of oscillation as high as 34 GHz are found to be possible without base grading. Comparison is made with the available, reported experimental results and good agreement is found. The analysis indicates that high-performance pnp InP-based HBT's are feasible, but that optimization of the transistor's multilayer structure is different than for the npn device