Second order effects of MOSFET

Second order effects

▶ Effects due to reduction in dimensions of MOSFET

▶ Short-channel effects:
▶ Has channel length comparable to depth of drain and source
junctions and depletion width
▶ Causes threshold voltage and I/V curve variations

▶ Narrow-channel effects:
▶ Narrow channel device has small channel width
Threshold voltage variations
▶ Function of manufacturing technology & body bias

▶ Assumed constant in long channel devices

▶ With reduced dimensions, Vt also depends on:

◻ L – the length of the channel

◻ W – the width of the channel
◻ VDS – the drain to source volatge
Threshold voltage variations
Variation with L Variation with VDS
▶ Source & drain are closer than ▶ Increase in depletion region at
long channel device drain side => DIBL
▶ Lesser Vt enough to cause strong ▶ Decreases Vt
inversion
▶ Decreases with L for short channel
devices
Threshold voltage variations
Narrow channel effects

▶ Very high VDS causes shorting of ▶ Depletion region extends under

drain and source field-oxide
▶ Sharp increase in current ▶ Gate voltage must support this
▶ Punchthrough extra depletion charge to establish
a conducting channel
▶ This effect is significant for small
values of W
▶ Results in increase of the threshold
voltage.
Drain Induced Barrier Lowering (DIBL)
▶ DIBL refers to reduction of threshold voltage at higher drain voltages
▶ Depletion region around drain increases as VDS increases
▶ Extends into the channel region.
▶ When L reduces, potential barrier between S & D reduced
▶ Potential barrier is reduced even further by VDS
▶ Results in lowering of the threshold voltage

As channel length decreases, the

barrier φB to be surmounted by an electron
from the source on its way to the drain
reduces
Body Effect
▶ pn junctions of source-bulk and drain-bulk must be
reverse-biased
▶ Prevents leaking current from source/drain to substrate
▶ Source potential ≥ bulk potential
Body Effect (contd)
▶ When VS>VB, depletion width of the pn junction
increases
▶ Difficult to create a channel with the same VGS
▶ Reduces channel depth
▶ To return to the same channel depth, VGS needs to
increase
▶ Body effect seen as change in threshold voltage

where:
▶ VT0n is the threshold voltage when VSB=0
▶ ϕf is a physical parameter (2ϕf≈0.6V for NMOS and 0.75V for PMOS)
▶ γ is a process parameter called body-effect
parameter (γ≈0.4V1/2 for NMOS and −0.5V1/2 for PMOS).
Subthreshold conduction
▶ Current flow in channel depends on creation of inversion layer

▶ If VGS< VT, electrons in channel encounter potential barrier

▶ In small-geometry MOSFETs, potential barrier controlled by

VS and VDS

▶ If drain voltage is increased, potential barrier in channel

decreases (DIBL)

▶ Leads to flow of electrons between source and drain, even

if VGS <VT0

▶ Channel current flowing in this condition is called subthreshold

current
Channel length modulation
▶ Shortening of length of inverted channel region with increase in drain bias
▶ Increase in current and reduction of output resistance
▶ Beyond pinch-off point, as drain voltage increases, uninverted region
expands toward source
▶ Shortens length of channel region
Velocity saturation
▶ Electric field increases with reduction in size
▶ Carriers in channel have increased velocity
▶ At high fields, no linear relation between electric field and velocity
▶ Velocity saturates reaching the saturation velocity
▶ Caused by increased scattering of highly energetic electrons
▶ Increases the transit time of carriers
Mobility variation
μ = Average carrier drift velocity/ Electric field
▶ Varies according to type of charge carrier
▶ Electrons have higher mobility than holes

▶ Variation in mobility with gate voltage

▶ Decreases as carrier approaches velocity saturation limit

▶ Decreases with increasing doping concentration and increasing

temperature
Fowler- Nordheim Tunnelling
▶ Current flow through gate oxide

▶ Gate oxide is very thin

▶ Current flow from gate to source/drain by electron

tunnelling through gate oxide

▶ Limits thickness of gate oxide as processes are scaled

Drain punchthrough
▶ Drain is at a high voltage wrt source

▶ Depletion region around drain extends to source

▶ Causes current flow irrespective of gate voltage

▶ This is known as punch through condition

Impact ionization – Hot electrons
▶ Reduction of dimensions without scaling of supply voltages result in
large increase in electric field

▶ As length of gate is reduced, electric field at drain increases

▶ Field can become so high that electrons are imparted with enough
energy to become hot

▶ These hot electrons impact drain and dislodges holes

▶ Holes are then swept towards substrate and appear as substrate

current.

▶ This effect is known as impact ionization.

References
▶ Rabaey
▶ Wikipedia
▶ http://nptel.ac.in/courses/117103066/chap2/slides/slide28.
htm
▶ http://nptel.ac.in/courses/117101058/Slides/8.5.htm
▶ http://ecee.colorado.edu/~bart/book/book/chapter7/ch7_7.
htm#7_7_3
▶ http://www2.ess.nthu.edu.tw/~lkschang/letter/Introduction
%20to%20Solid-State%20Electronic%20Devices/Chapter
%2011.pdf
▶ http://www.onmyphd.com/?p=contents