Electron Drift Velocities at High Electric Fields in Gallium-Arsenide and Indium-Gallium - Arsenide
Windhorn, Thomas Hugo
This item is only available for download by members of the University of Illinois community. Students, faculty, and staff at the U of I may log in with your NetID and password to view the item. If you are trying to access an Illinois-restricted dissertation or thesis, you can request a copy through your library's Inter-Library Loan office or purchase a copy directly from ProQuest.
Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/69235
Description
Title
Electron Drift Velocities at High Electric Fields in Gallium-Arsenide and Indium-Gallium - Arsenide
Author(s)
Windhorn, Thomas Hugo
Issue Date
1982
Department of Study
Electrical Engineering
Discipline
Electrical Engineering
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Engineering, Electronics and Electrical
Abstract
A microwave time-of-flight technique has been used to measure electron drift velocities in n-GaAs and n-In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As over a wide range of temperatures and electric field strengths.
Electron drift velocities in n-GaAs have been measured at temperatures from 95 K to 385 K and at electric field strengths of up to 236 kV/cm. The present results are in excellent agreement over the entire temperature range with previously reported measurements at lower electric fields. The electron drift velocity in n-GaAs has been found to decrease monotonically at all temperatures, and over the entire range of electric field strengths investigated.
Electron drift velocities in n-In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As have been determined for electric field strengths from about 15 kV/cm to 163 kV/cm at various temperatures from 95 K to 300 K. The electron drift velocity in n-In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As was also found to be a continuously decreasing function of increasing electric field over the entire range of temperatures and field strengths investigated. The electron velocity-field characteristic for n-In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As exhibits a higher peak velocity and a lower high-field velocity than is obtained with GaAs. In addition, the negative differential mobility is larger in In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As at all temperatures and field strengths investigated. Finally, the variation of velocity with temperature at a fixed electric field strength in In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As was found to be about one third the variation in GaAs.
The velocity-field characteristics reported in this work are the first measurements of temperature dependent drift velocities using the microwave time-of-flight ever reported. Furthermore, the velocities measured in GaAs have been measured, at most temperatures, for field strengths twice as high as any previously reported measurement of temperature dependent velocities. Finally, the electron drift velocity measurements in n-In(,0.53)Ga(,0.47)As performed in this work are the only known measurements of drift velocities in this material for electric field strengths in excess of (TURN)3-4 kV/cm.
Use this login method if you
don't
have an
@illinois.edu
email address.
(Oops, I do have one)
IDEALS migrated to a new platform on June 23, 2022. If you created
your account prior to this date, you will have to reset your password
using the forgot-password link below.
