Light-Effect Transistor (LET) with Multiple Independent Gating Controls for Optical Logic Gates and Optical Amplification

Abstract

Modern electronics are developing electronic-optical integrated circuits, while their electronic backbone, e.g., field-effect transistors (FETs), remains the same. However, further FET down scaling is facing physical and technical challenges. A light-effect transistor (LET) offers electronic-optical hybridization at the component level, which can continue Moore's law to the quantum region without requiring a FET's fabrication complexity, e.g., physical gate and doping, by employing optical gating and photoconductivity. Multiple independent gates are therefore readily realized to achieve unique functionalities without increasing chip space. Here we report LET device characteristics and novel digital and analog applications, such as optical logic gates and optical amplification. Prototype CdSe-nanowire-based LETs show output and transfer characteristics resembling advanced FETs, e.g., on/off ratios up to ∼1.0 × 10 6 with a source-drain voltage of ∼1.43 V, gate-power of ∼260 nW, and a subthreshold swing of ∼0.3 nW/decade (excluding losses). Our work offers new electronic-optical integration strategies and electronic and optical computing approaches.

Light‐Driven WSe2‐ZnO Junction Field‐Effect Transistors for High‐Performance Photodetection

“…[10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] Especially, employing sensitizers to decorate the transport channels has been widely adopted to achieve an ultrahigh gain based on photogating effect. [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] However, one obstacle in such devices is that the long lifetime of photoexcited carriers captured in sensitizers would result in slow response, which is a common problem with trap-assisted gain mechanism. Though great efforts have been made to use various materials or device structures to regulate the Assembling nanomaterials into hybrid structures provides a promising and flexible route to reach ultrahigh responsivity by introducing a trapassisted gain (G) mechanism.…”

Ultrascaled Germanium Nanowires for Highly Sensitive Photodetection at the Quantum Ballistic Limit

“…The sensitivity of the photodetector operating in this regime is significantly enhanced by the high transconductance originating from the steep current increase in-between individual conductance plateaus (compare eq 1) and corresponds to a photoconductive gain of approximately 2 × 10 4 , which is remarkable considering the spatial footprint of the sensing element of less than 500 nm 2 . The manipulation of individual transmission single current channels represents the ultimate limit of photodetectors, allowing for advanced concepts such as light effect transistors 27 and light sensing elements with practically zero off-state current.…”

Current Modulation by Optoelectric Control of Ferroelectric Domains

“…To demonstrate the potential applications of KNBNNO, a device was prepared using 120 μm thick KNBNNO sandwiched between two 200 nm thick ITO electrodes. In this arrangement, KNBNNO works as a monolithic two-terminal photodetector or photoswitch and a ferroelectric light-effect transistor or a solaristor, where one electrode acts as the source while the other as the drain and light exposure as a virtual gate corresponding to those in conventional semiconductor transistors. KNBNNO was initially poled electrically (6 kV mm –1 for 30 min) to achieve higher asymmetry and built-in fields.…”

“…Guided by these findings, applications of fast ultralarge domain switching, a ferroelectric function generator, direct current (DC) amplification, and asymmetric modulation of alternate current (AC) are achieved. Based on these findings, KNBNNO is found to work as a monolithic (in a metal-ferroelectric-semiconductor-metal (MFSM) parallel plate configuration) solaristor, phototransistor, photo field-effect transistor (FET), photoswitch, and a light-effect transistor (a device with two electrical terminals and light acting as a virtual gate: same as a parallel plate capacitor) …”

“…Based on these findings, KNBNNO is found to work as a monolithic (in a metal-ferroelectricsemiconductor-metal (MFSM) parallel plate configuration) solaristor, 23 phototransistor, 23 photo field-effect transistor (FET), 38 photoswitch, 39 and a light-effect transistor (a device with two electrical terminals and light acting as a virtual gate: same as a parallel plate capacitor). 40…”