Multiband corrections for the semi-classical simulation of interband tunneling in GaAs tunnel junctions

Louarn, Kevin; Claveau, Yann; Hapiuk, Dimitri; Fontaine, C.; Arnoult, Alexandre; Taliercio, Thierry; Licitra, C.; Piquemal, F.; Bounouh, Alexandre; Cavassilas, Nicolas; Almuneau, Guilhem

doi:10.1088/1361-6463/aa804e

Cited by 5 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…A probable reason for this discrepancy has been found in an analysis from UT [48] that considers the band to band coupling (mixing) of the conduction band and the light hole valence band which will reasonably account for the observed tunneling current at doping densities below the level at which band narrowing effects may dominate. A subsequent analysis [49] refined this calculation and found agreement with a more complete non-equilibrium Green's function formalism (NEGF) [50,51] calculation. However, quantitative agreement with experimental results was achieved only by using bandgap narrowing as a fitting parameter as there is no complete theory for this effect.…”

Section: Modelingmentioning

confidence: 68%

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Tunnel Junctions for III-V Multijunction Solar Cells Review

2018

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Tunnel Junctions, as addressed in this review, are conductive, optically transparent semiconductor layers used to join different semiconductor materials in order to increase overall device efficiency. The first monolithic multi-junction solar cell was grown in 1980 at NCSU and utilized an AlGaAs/AlGaAs tunnel junction. In the last 4 decades both the development and analysis of tunnel junction structures and their application to multi-junction solar cells has resulted in significant performance gains. In this review we will first make note of significant studies of III-V tunnel junction materials and performance, then discuss their incorporation into cells and modeling of their characteristics. A Recent study implicating thermally activated compensation of highly doped semiconductors by native defects rather than dopant diffusion in tunnel junction thermal degradation will be discussed. AlGaAs/InGaP tunnel junctions, showing both high current capability and high transparency (high bandgap), are the current standard for space applications. Of significant note is a variant of this structure containing a quantum well interface showing the best performance to date. This has been studied by several groups and will be discussed at length in order to show a path to future improvements.

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Section: Modelingmentioning

confidence: 68%

“…Detailed modeling of GaAs tunnel junctions [49] using non-equilibrium Green's function formalism (NEGF) [50,51] combined with the previous success of this approach on more complex structures [61] provides a promising approach for future modeling of high performance tunneling structures.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tunnel Junctions for III-V Multijunction Solar Cells Review

2018

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“…The NEGF approach inherently includes quantum behavior such as quantum confinement, and should be preferred over the semi-classical approach for the present study of low dimensional structure. In [2], we also show that the Band-Gap-Narrowing (BGN) has to be empirically considered in the simulations to accurately reproduce the magnitude of the peak tunneling current density. In the present study, since we are primary focusing on the relative evolution of the tunneling current density with the addition of nanostructures in the active region of the TJ, we thus neglected the BGN effect to prevent from introducing an adjustable parameter in the model.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Effect of low and staggered gap quantum wells inserted in GaAs tunnel junctions

Louarn¹,

Claveau²,

Marigo-Lombart³

et al. 2018

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

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In this article, we investigate the impacts of the insertion of either a type I InGaAs or a type II InGaAs/GaAsSb quantum well on the performances of MBE-grown GaAs Tunnel Junctions (TJs). The devices are designed and simulated using a quantum transport model based on the non-equilibrium Green's function formalism and a 6-band k.p hamiltonian. We experimentally observe significant improvements of the peak tunneling current density on both heterostructures with a 460-fold increase for a moderately doped GaAs TJ when the InGaAs QW is inserted at the junction interface, and a 3-fold improvement on a highly doped GaAs TJ integrating a type II InGaAs/GaAsSb QW. Thus the simple insertion of staggered band lineup heterostructures enables to reach tunneling current well above the kA/cm 2 range, equivalent to the best achieved results for Si-doped GaAs TJs, implying very interesting potentials for TJ-based components such as multi-junction solar cells, vertical cavity surface emitting lasers and tunnel-field effect transistors.

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“…The details of this model, which properly considers the conduction−valence coupling at the origin of the band-to-band tunneling, can be found in refs 19 and 20; we have previously demonstrated its ability to predict the J-V characteristics of a simple GaAs TJ. 21 The set of material parameters is taken from ref 22, whereas the band offsets of the InGaAs/GaAsSb heterejonction are taken from ref 11. The effect of strain is not considered in the calculation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To understand the influence of the thickness on the tunneling properties of the type-II TJs, we performed NEGF based simulations of the quantum transport using a six-band k.p Hamiltonian for the electronic states. The details of this model, which properly considers the conduction-valence coupling at the origin of the band-to-band tunneling, can be found in (19) and (20) ; we have previously demonstrated its ability to predict the J-V characteristics of a simple GaAs TJ (21). The set of material parameters is taken from (22), whereas the band-offsets of the InGaAs/GaAsSb heterejonction are taken from (11).…”

Section: Origin Of the Impact Of The Type-ii Tj Layer Thicknesses On mentioning

confidence: 99%

Thickness Limitation of Band-to-Band Tunneling Process in GaAsSb/InGaAs Type-II Tunnel Junctions Designed for Multi-Junction Solar Cells

Louarn

Claveau

Fontaine

et al. 2019

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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This article reports on the impact of the thickness and/or the composition on the performance of type-II n+ InGaAs / p+ GaAsSb tunnel junctions. The InGaAs/GaAsSb staggered band-offset heterojunction is expected to improve tunneling properties. Devices have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy with various thicknesses and/or Sb and In concentrations. For thin elastically strained type-II tunnel junctions, the electrical characteristics exhibit degraded transport performances compared to the reference p+ GaAs / n+ GaAs tunnel junction structures, while much better tunneling peak currents are achieved with strain-relaxed thick type-II tunnel junctions. Based on a theoretical analysis of the local density of states and the band-edges profiles of the type II tunnel junctions, we propose a suitable design for type II tunnel junctions with high tunneling current density towards their use in multijunction solar cells.

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Multiband corrections for the semi-classical simulation of interband tunneling in GaAs tunnel junctions

Abstract: The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of multiband corrections on the current density of GaAs Tunnel Junctions (TJs) calculated with a refined yet simple Semi-Classical Interband Tunneling Model (SCITM). The non-parabolicity of the considered bands and the

Cited by 5 publications

References 32 publications

Tunnel Junctions for III-V Multijunction Solar Cells Review

Tunnel Junctions for III-V Multijunction Solar Cells Review

Effect of low and staggered gap quantum wells inserted in GaAs tunnel junctions

Thickness Limitation of Band-to-Band Tunneling Process in GaAsSb/InGaAs Type-II Tunnel Junctions Designed for Multi-Junction Solar Cells

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