Tunneling, Current Gain, and Transconductance in Silicon-Germanium Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors Operating at Millikelvin Temperatures

Davidović, D.; Ying, H.; Dark, J.; Wier, B.  R.; Ge, L.; Lourenco, N.  E.; Omprakash, A.  P.; Mourigal, M.; Cressler, J.  D.

doi:10.1103/physrevapplied.8.024015

Title: Tunneling, Current Gain, and Transconductance in Silicon-Germanium Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors Operating at Millikelvin Temperatures

Journal Article · Fri Aug 18 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Physical Review Applied

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevapplied.8.024015· OSTI ID:1535766

Davidović, D. ^[1]; Ying, H. ^[1]; Dark, J. ^[1]; Wier, B. R. ^[1]; Ge, L. ^[1]; Lourenco, N. E. ^[1]; Omprakash, A. P. ^[1]; Mourigal, M. ^[1]; Cressler, J. D. ^[1]

Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States)

Quantum-transport measurements in advanced silicon-germanium heterojunction bipolar transistors (SiGe HBTs) are presented and analyzed, including tunneling spectroscopy of discrete impurity levels localized within the transistor and the dependence on an applied magnetic field. The collector current at millikelvin temperatures is well accounted for by ideal electron tunneling throughout the entire base. Furthermore, the amplification principle at millikelvin temperatures is fundamentally quantum mechanical in nature: an increase in base voltage, requiring a moderate base current, creates an equal and opposite decrease in the tunneling barrier seen by the electrons in the emitter, thereby increasing the collector current significantly more than the base current, producing current gain. Highly scaled SiGe HBTs operate predictably at millikelvin temperatures, thus opening the possibility of viable SiGe millikelvin circuitry.

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Research Organization:: Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States); Lockheed Martin Corporation, Littleton, CO (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program

Grant/Contract Number:: FG02-06ER46281; AC04-94AL85000

OSTI ID:: 1535766

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1375543

Journal Information:: Physical Review Applied, Vol. 8, Issue 2; ISSN 2331-7019

Publisher:: American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 10 works

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Cited By (2)

Single-Shot Readout Performance of Two Heterojunction-Bipolar-Transistor Amplification Circuits at Millikelvin Temperatures Curry, M. J.; Rudolph, M.; England, T. D. Scientific Reports, Vol. 9, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-52868-1	journal	November 2019
Increasing the signal-to-noise ratio of magnetic tunnel junctions by cryogenic preamplification Dark, J.; Nunn, G.; Cressler, J. D. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 125, Issue 16 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5059326	journal	April 2019

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Title: Tunneling, Current Gain, and Transconductance in Silicon-Germanium Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors Operating at Millikelvin Temperatures

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