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Electron transport in AlN under high electric fields

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 March 2011

Ramón Collazo ,
Raoul Schlesser ,
Amy Roskowski ,
Robert F. Davis  and
Z. Sitar
Ramón Collazo
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7919
Raoul Schlesser
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7919
Amy Roskowski
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7919
Robert F. Davis
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7919
Z. Sitar
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7919
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Abstract

The energy distribution of electrons transported through an intrinsic AlN film was directly measured as a function of the applied field, and AlN film thickness. Following the transport, electrons were extracted into vacuum through a semitransparent Au electrode and their energy distribution was measured using an electron spectrometer. Transport through films thicker than 95 nm and applied field between 200 kV/cm -350 kV/cm occurred as steady-state hot electron transport represented by a Maxwellian energy distribution, with a corresponding carrier temperature. At higher fields (470 kV/cm), intervalley scattering was evidenced by a multi-component energy distribution with a second peak at the energy position of the first satellite valley. Electron transport through films thinner than 95 nm demonstrated velocity overshoot under fields greater than 550 kV/cm. This was evidenced by a symmetric energy distribution centered at an energy above the conduction band minimum. This indicated that the drift component of the electron velocity was on the order of the “thermal” component. A transient length of less than 80 nm was deduced from these observations.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 693 , 2001 , I6.45.1
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2002

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References

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