Wide energy gap semiconductors are broadly recognized as promising materials for novel electronic and optoelectronic device applications. As informed device design requires a firm grasp of the material properties of the underlying electronic materials, the electron transport that occurs within the wide energy gap semiconductors has been the focus of considerable study over the years. In an effort to provide some perspective on this rapidly evolving and burgeoning field of research, we review analyzes of the electron transport within some wide energy gap semiconductors of current interest in this paper. In order to narrow the scope of this review, we will primarily focus on the electron transport that occurs within the wurtzite phases of gallium nitride, aluminum nitride, indium nitride, and zinc oxide in this review, these materials being of great current interest to the wide energy gap semiconductor community; indium nitride, while not a wide energy gap semiconductor in of itself, is included as it is often alloyed with other wide energy gap semiconductors, the resultant alloys being wide energy gap semiconductors themselves. The electron transport that occurs within zinc-blende gallium arsenide is also considered, albeit primarily for bench-marking purposes. Most of our discussion will focus on results obtained from our ensemble semi-classical three-valley Monte Carlo simulations of the electron transport within these materials, our results conforming with state-of-the-art wide energy gap semiconductor orthodoxy. A brief tutorial on the Monte Carlo electron transport simulation approach, this approach being used to generate the results presented herein, is also provided. Steady-state and transient electron transport results are presented. The evolution of the field, and a survey of the current literature, are also featured. We conclude our review by presenting some recent developments on the electron transport within these materials.

Articles you may be interested inSteady-state and transient electron transport within wurtzite and zinc-blende indium nitride

Within the framework of an ensemble semiclassical three-valley Monte Carlo simulation approach, we examine how the character of the electron transport within zinc-blende indium nitride varies in response to changes in the non-parabolicity. All other material and band structural parameters are set to the nominal zinc-blende indium nitride values prescribed by Hadi et al. (J Appl Phys 113:113709, 2013). We find that while low non-parabolicities lead to a substantial number of transitions into the upper energy conduction band valleys, for non-parabolicity coefficients in excess of 3 eV À1 , very few such transitions occur. Variations in the non-parabolicity are also noted to play an important role in shaping the form of the corresponding velocity-field characteristic. Correlations between the results are explored. How the relationship between the electron transport within zinc-blende indium nitride and its non-parabolicity may be exploited for device application purposes is commented upon.

The III-V nitride semiconductors, gallium nitride, aluminum nitride, and indium nitride, have been recognized as promising materials for novel electronic and optoelectronic device applications for some time now. Since informed device design requires a firm grasp of the material properties of the underlying electronic materials, the electron transport that occurs within these III-V nitride semiconductors has been the focus of considerable study over the years. In an effort to provide some perspective on this rapidly evolving field, in this paper we review analyses of the electron transport within these III-V nitride semiconductors. In particular, we discuss the evolution of the field, compare and contrast results obtained by different researchers, and survey the more recent literature. In order to narrow the scope of this chapter, we will primarily focus on the electron transport within bulk wurtzite gallium nitride, aluminum nitride, and indium nitride for the purposes of this review. Most of our discussion will focus on results obtained from our ensemble semiclassical three-valley Monte Carlo simulations of the electron transport within these materials, our results conforming with state-of-the-art III-V nitride semiconductor orthodoxy. Steady-state and transient electron transport results are presented. We conclude our discussion by presenting some recent developments on the electron transport within these materials.

Drawing upon a collection of electron transport results, coupled with a variety of other material parameters, we set expectations on the upper limits to device performance of zinc blende boron-nitride-based electron devices. We examine how the device performance varies with the device length-scale, noting that a diversity of physical regimes are experienced as the device length-scale reduces from that corresponding to a long electron device, i.e., 100 μm, to the sub-micron level. Results corresponding to zinc blende boron nitride are contrasted with those associated with germanium, silicon, gallium arsenide, the 4H-phase of silicon carbide, wurtzite gallium nitride, and diamond. The electron device performance metrics that we focus upon for the purposes of this analysis include the effective mobility, accounting for the transition between the ballistic and the collision-dominated electron transport regimes, and the cutoff frequency.