DFT/NEGF study of discrete dopants in Si/III–V 3D FET

Abstract

In this work, electron densities around dopants in Si and GaAs have been calculated using DFT calculations. These extracted densities have been used to describe dopants in an in-house Non-Equilibrium Green functions (NEGF) device simulator. The transfer characteristics of nanowire gate all around field effect transistor have been calculated using density functional theory (DFT) electron densities. These transport calculations were compared with those using a point charge model of the dopant. The dopants are located in the middle of the channel of the device. Specifically, DFT calculations of a 512 atom Si supercell with a single impurity atom have been carried out, both phosphorous and boron atoms have been used as donor and acceptor impurities respectively. The calculations were repeated on a gallium arsenide supercell, where the silicon atom substituted gallium and arsenide to act as donor and acceptor respectively. We found that for donors and acceptors, the DFT charge distribution extend similarly in both materials. In addition, the relaxed structure produces a 50% larger spread of electronic charge as compared with unrelaxed Si and GaAs. The extracted current voltage characteristics of the devices are altered significantly using the charge density obtained by DFT. At 0.7 V the current in Si is 20% larger using the DFT charge density compared to the point charge model for donors. Whereas the current using the point charge model in GaAs is 2.5 times larger than the distributed charge. Devices exhibit substantial tunnelling currents for donors and acceptors irrespectively of the model of the dopant considered. In GaAs, this was 76% using a point charge and 78% using the distributed charge when using a donor; 61% and 68% in Si respectively. The tunnelling current using acceptors for Si was 100% and 99% using GaAs for both models.

A review of quantum transport in field-effect transistors

“…Nevertheless, it is apparent from these, and other sources, that the quantum interference around an impurity is a real event that will influence nanoscale devices. Indeed, a study of the electron wave on its own when near its donor atom shows a quite complicated wave function that is dependent upon the presence of strain in the system [104].…”

“…The effect of random dopants in an InAs drain region for a Si tunnel FET was also examined [247]. Then, using DFT to calculate both the band structure and the full asymmetric wave functions of donor electrons in Si nanowire FETs, it was clearly established how this anisotropy could affect the transport properties [104].…”