High field transport in semiconductors

Hot electrons: The expression for electron temperature and mobility of electrons

Semiconductors exhibit linear Ohmic behaviour that is, J  E in the region of low
electric fields. For the high fields present in some devices, however, considerable
deviation from Ohm’s law is observed, as shown in Figure 1 for n-type germanium.
The deviation becomes significant at some field 1, and for even 1 <  the current lies
below its expected ohmic value. Above a certain higher field 2, the current actually
saturates at a constant value until, at an extremely high field, usually in the 100 kV/cm
range, the sample undergoes an electrical breakdown.

We shall present a theory which gives the physical basis underlying this non-ohmic
behaviour at high fields. Consider the average electron energy E = 3kT/2. At high
fields (taking an n-type sample for concreteness), the electron receives considerable
energy from the field because of the acceleration of the electron between collision,
and also loses energy to the lattice (energy which appears as Joule heat).

In the steady state the rates of gain and loss of energy must be equal. That is,

(1)

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where, e is the charge of the electron, ε is the electric field,  is the electron drift
velocity, n is the energy relaxation time, TL is the lattice temperature and Te is the
electron temperature. We have allowed for the possibility that the electron temperature
Te may be higher than the lattice temperature TL (Te > TL), leading to the concept of
hot electrons.

By substituting, , and in Eq(1),

we have

or

or electron temperature, (2)

This is the expression for the electron temperature. For n = 10-11 s, n = 103 cm2/V-s
and ε = 103 V/cm, we find that T = (Te - T)  100 K. That is, the electrons are hotter
than the lattice by 100 K. The heating would be much greater at higher fields and/or
mobility.

We know that n = en/ mn* = e ln/mn*n, where n is the random velocity of

the electron, and ln is the mean free-path. Since n α T1/2, it follows that n α T-1/2.
We may thus write

(3)

Where n,o is the familiar low-field mobility. Te can be eliminated from Eq(3) using
Eq(2) as follows:

Consider Eq(2),

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Using Eq(3)

Or

Using binomial theorem,

Therefore, (4)

which explains the initial decrease in mobility just above the field 1 in Figure 1. The
situation in the intermediate field range will be highly complicated. One can explain
the current saturation at high fields by assuming that the electrons dissipate their
energy by emitting optical phonons in the lattice. Since these phonons have much
greater energy than their acoustic counterparts, they represent the most efficient means
for the electron to rid themselves of the energy gained from the field, thus achieving a
steady-state condition.

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 The Gunn effect

The Gunn effect is named after J.B. Gunn, who made the discovery in 1963, while
measuring the current of the hot electrons in GaAs and other III-V compounds. When
he was measuring the current J versus the field  in n-type GaAs, he observed an
unexpected phenomenon. As  is increased from zero, the current increases gradually
and essentially linear (Figure 2a) until a field 0 is reached. As the field is increased
beyond 0, the current suddenly becomes oscillatory (versus t, not versus ). These
oscillations are essentially coherent, provided the sample is sufficiently thin. The field
0 which is necessary for the onset of the Gunn oscillation is called the threshold field.
Typical values for GaAs, as found by Gunn, are 0 = 3 kV/cm, thickness of the sample
L = 2.5  10-3 cm and frequency of the oscillation  = 5GHz.

Gunn then performed several experiments to determine the character of the

oscillations with a view to discover the physical mechanism responsible. Figure 2b
shows J versus  for GaAs, as calculated theoretically. Note an interesting fact: There
is a certain field range in which J decreases as  increases (the curve corresponding to
this range is shown by the dashed line in the figure). This behaviour (contrary to the
usual one, in which an increase in  causes an increase in J), is described by saying
that the sample has a negative differential conductance (NDC).

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There is a general theorem in electrodynamics which states that an NDC situation is an
unstable one; in other words, NDC is unlikely to exist in a steady-state situation. A
system cannot remain in an unstable state indefinitely, and any fluctuations which may be
present will cause it to become increasingly unstable until there is a sudden transition to a
stable state. In the case of the Gunn effect, the unstable state of a steady current with an
NDC behavior gives way to an entirely different state- one in which the current oscillates
coherently in time. The threshold field 0 for the oscillations is the same as the field in
which the NDC region sets in, and this lends further support to the above argument. The
characteristic oscillation frequency is in the GHz range, and this suggests the Gunn device
as possible microwave generator and/or an oscillator. These and other potential
applications underline the great interest in the Gunn effect.

Let us turn now to the physical mechanism responsible for the appearance of the
conduction band of GaAs, shown in figure 3. There are two n types of valleys in the
conduction band. (a). there is one central valley, i.e., the bottom of the valley is located at
k=0, the center of the Brillouin zone (BZ). (b) in addition, there are six secondary valleys
whose bottoms are located along the [100] direction in the BZ. These six valleys are
equivalent to each other by symmetry (cubic symmetry of the crystal), but they are not
equivalent to the central valley. In GaAs, the bottom of the secondary valley lies above
that of the central valley by an amount  = 0.36 eV. The electrons of central and
secondary valleys have widely different masses and mobilities. If we use the labels 1 and
2 to denote the central and secondary valleys, respectively, then for GaAs m1 = 0.072m0
and 1=5103 cm2/V-s, while m2 = 0.36 m0 and 2= 100 cm2/ V-s.
E

1 2
2
Secondary
Central valley
valley  = 0.36 eV
[100]
0 k

Figure 3: Conduction band in GaAs, showing central and

secondary valleys. (only half the band is shown)

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Note that m2 is considerably larger than m1 (m2= 5 m1), but even more important, the
mobility 2 is very much smaller than 1(2 = 1/50). This means that an electron in
the secondary valley drifts much more slowly than an electron in the central valley.
Under normal circumstances, all the electrons reside in the central valley. (let us
suppose for the sake of concreteness that the sample is doped so that the electron
concentration n is about 1015 to 1016 cm-3.) This is so because the energy
corresponding to the bottom of the secondary valley, (= 0.36eV) is so much larger
than kT at room temperature that only a negligible fraction of the electrons are excited
to the secondary valleys. Therefore we may write n1 n, and the current for a field  is
given by

At lower electric field,

J= n1e1 = n e (5)

Since the secondary valleys are unoccupied, we may ignore them in discussing
transport properties. However, when strong electic field is appllied to the system, the
situation changes significantly. As we have such larger field causes the electrons to
become hot , i.e., to have a higher temperature than the lattice at sufficiently high
fields, the electron temperature Te may, in fact, becomes quite high. But at high
temperature the secondary valleys become populated. When this happens, the current
should be given not by Eq(4.5) but by the more general formula:

At higher electric field,

J = J1 + J2 = n1e1 + n2e2 and n = n1 + n2 (6)

where J1 and J2 are, respectively the currents of electrons in the central valley and the
secondary valleys (all six valleys). We can now see, by examining the two terms in
Eq(6) , how it is possible for an NDC to come about in a material . But we must
remember these two facts: the sum n1+ n2 is equal to n, which is a constant
independent of , and 2 <<1 as  increases from zero to a value just below 0, all the
electrons are essentially in the central vally and n1  n. The current is then given by,

Just below 0 , J  n e1 [because, n1 = n] (7)

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which, when plotted, is a stright line of slope appropriate to the mobility 1( see
Figure 2b). But as  reaches 0, and the temperature rises, the concentration n1
decreases abruptly, and n2 increase by the same amount. In this small field increase, J1
decreases rapidly because n1 does . This decrease is partially offset by an increasee in
J2. However, because 2 is so very small, the increase in J2 is very small, and does not
even come close to compensating for the decrease in J1 . As a result, the total current J
= J1+J2, actually decreases, leading to an NDC.

As  increases further, more and more the electrons transfer from the central to the
secondary valleys, leading to further decrease in J. The NDC resulting from this
intervalley transfer is shown in Figure(2b). Eventually at very high field, all the
electrons have essentially transferred to the secondary valleys, so we may write

J  J2 = n e2 (8)

The current now begins to increase again with , but with a slope appropriate to 2
(see Figure 2b).

Expression for the drift velocity

If (n1,v1) and (n2,v2) are the electron densities and drift velocities respectively in the
central valley and secondary valleys of Figure (3), the average drift velocity of
electrons may be expresses as

Vd = (n1v1 + n2v2)/n1+n2 (9)

Expressing v1 = 1 and v2 = 2 we get

Vd = [1 + (n2/n1) 2] / [1+(n2/n1)]  (10)

Here, 1 and 2 are the mobilities of the electrons in the central and secondary valleys.
The expression for electron density in an intrinsic material is given by

n = Nc exp[-(Ec - Ef)/kT]

Therefore, we can express

n1 = Nc,1 exp[-(Ec,1-Ef)/kT] and n2 = Nc,2 exp[-(Ec,2-Ef)/kT]

Therefore, (n2/n1) =( Nc,2 / Nc,1) exp[-(Ec,2-Ec,1)/kT] = Z exp [-EG / kT] (11)

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where EG = (Ec,2-Ec,1) and Z = (Nc,2 / Nc,1). On combining Eqs(11) and (10) we get
the expression for the drift velocity as

Vd = {[1+2 Z exp(-EG/k Te)] / [1+Z exp(-EG/kTe)]} 

where Te denotes the electron temperature. This equation explain the variation of the
drift velocity with respect to 1 and 2, where both 1 and 2 are the functions of the
applied electric field.

Superlattice phenomenon
The lattice spacing of normal semiconductor samples is of the order of 5 Å.
Consequently, in the vicinity of the zone edge the wave vector ( /a) and the electron
velocity (h/me*a) are 1010/m and 106 m/s respectively. We know that the electrons in
semiconductors start acquiring scattering-limited velocities beginning with 105 m/s in
an electric field of intensity in the range of 105 V/m –107 V/m . Thus, in real
semiconductor crystal it may not be possible to accelerate electrons from the bottom
to the top of the conduction band because of the electron-phonon interaction. This
may be realized if by some means the size of the Brillouin zone is reduced so that the
electron velocity at the zone edge falls below the hot electron limit as mentioned
above. Obviously the size of the Brillouin zone could be reduced if the lattice spacing
is somehow increased. Such a lattice if realized would be a superlattice because it
cannot be found in nature. It takes a simple calculation to show that if the lattice
spacing of the hypothetical crystal is set around 100 Å, the wave vector and the
velocity at the Brillion zone drop to 108/m and 104 m/s respectively. In such a case,
due to reduced electron-phonon scattering, it would not be difficult to accelerate the
electrons from the bottom to the top of the conduction band by applying an
appropriate electric field.
We know that the electron effective mass me* is positive near the bottom 0 of the
conduction band i.e., at k = 0 in Figure 4, while it is negative near its top. Hence, if it
were possible to accelerate electron from 0 to A by applying an appropriate d.c. field
over the superlattice sample, the electron effective mass me*, the mobility n and the
sample conductivity n would all be negative.

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As the electric field over the superlattice sample is slowly raised, the electron energy
E and its wave vector k would first trace the path 0A of Figure 4 if there is no
electron-phonon interaction hampering their motion. At A the carriers suffer a Bragg
reflection and switch back to B (since the wave vector changes to [(/a) – (2/a)] = -
/a). The electrons then begin to trace the path BO of the curve under the influence of
the applied electric field . The sample conductance once again changes from
negative to positive as the wave vector crosses the point 0 of the E-k curve. Thus in a
superlattice a high-frequency oscillation can be realized by applying a d.c. field of
appropriate magnitude. Owing to the increased lattice spacing the electron-phonon
interaction impeding the carrier motion would be smaller. The original Brillouin zone,
as a result, will be subdivided into a number of minizones or minibands separated by
minigaps as shown in Figure 5, where the superlattice period d is fixed as thrice the
lattice period (d = 3a). The oscillation frequency of electrons may be computed as
detailed below.

The equation of motion of electrons on the basis of Newton’s law when electron-
phonon collisions are absent is given by;

(12)

where  is the applied electric field intensity. On integrating Eq(12) over a minizone
or miniband, we get,

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 or (13)

where fB denotes the Bloch frequency of oscillation. For example, a superlattice with
d = 100 Å and  = 105 V/m, the Bloch frequency fB works out to around 1012 Hz.
For such a superlattice if a suitable magnetic field H is applied perpendicular to the
plane of the Figure 5, the electrons would start cycling about the magnetic field with a
frequency fc = (qH /2me*) in the plane of the diagram. Such a circular motion is
known to be resolved into two mutually perpendicular simple harmonic motions
(SHMs) in the plane of the circle, one along the k-axis and the other perpendicular to
it. When the SHMs produced by the electric and magnetic fields match, a considerable
amount of d.c. power maintaining the electric field is absorbed. Such a phenomenon is
known as Stark resonance. Given fB = fC , we may easily derive the magnitude of
the electron effective mass in a superlattice.

i.e.,

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