Plasmonic Terahertz Wave Detectors Based on Silicon Field-Effect Transistors

Min Woo RYU
Sung-Ho KIM
Hee Cheol HWANG
Kibog PARK
Kyung Rok KIM

Publication
IEICE TRANSACTIONS on Electronics   Vol.E96-C    No.5    pp.649-654
Publication Date: 2013/05/01
Online ISSN: 1745-1353
DOI: 10.1587/transele.E96.C.649
Print ISSN: 0916-8516
Type of Manuscript: Special Section PAPER (Special Section on Fundamentals and Applications of Advanced Semiconductor Devices)
Category: 
Keyword: 
plasmonic terahertz detector,  silicon field-effect transistor,  nonresonant,  technology computer-aided design platform,  

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Summary: 
In this paper, we present the validity and potential capacity of a modeling and simulation environment for the nonresonant plasmonic terahertz (THz) detector based on the silicon (Si) field-effect transistor (FET) with a technology computer-aided design (TCAD) platform. The nonresonant and “overdamped” plasma-wave behaviors have been modeled by introducing a quasi-plasma electron charge box as a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in the channel region only around the source side of Si FETs. Based on the coupled nonresonant plasma-wave physics and continuity equation on the TCAD platform, the alternate-current (AC) signal as an incoming THz wave radiation successfully induced a direct-current (DC) drain-to-source output voltage as a detection signal in a sub-THz frequency regime under the asymmetric boundary conditions with a external capacitance between the gate and drain. The average propagation length and density of a quasi-plasma have been confirmed as around 100 nm and 11019/cm3, respectively, through the transient simulation of Si FETs with the modulated 2DEG at 0.7 THz. We investigated the incoming radiation frequency dependencies on the characteristics of the plasmonic THz detector operating in sub-THz nonresonant regime by using the quasi-plasma modeling on TCAD platform. The simulated dependences of the photoresponse with quasi-plasma 2DEG modeling on the structural parameters such as gate length and dielectric thickness confirmed the operation principle of the nonresonant plasmonic THz detector in the Si FET structure. The proposed methodologies provide the physical design platform for developing novel plasmonic THz detectors operating in the nonresonant detection mode.