Two types of photodetectors containing Ge/Si quantum dots have been fabricated based on materials grown by molecular beam epitaxy and characterized with several experimental techniques. The aim was to study new device architectures with the implementation of Ge nanostructures, in order to obtain high detection efficiency in the near infrared range at room temperature. Heterojunction bipolar phototransistors were fabricated with 10 Ge dot layers in the base-collector (b-c) junction. With the illumination of near infrared radiation at 1.31 to 1.55 µm, the incident light would excite the carriers. The applied field across the b-c junction caused hole transport into the base, leading to a reduced potential barrier between the emitter-base (e-b) junction. Subsequently, this resulted in enhanced injection of electrons across the base into the collector, i.e., forming an amplified photo-induced current. We have therefore obtained significantly enhanced photo-response for the Ge-dot based phototransistors, compared to corresponding quantum dot p-i-n photodiodes. Responsivity values up to 470 mA/W were measured at 1.31 µm using waveguide geometry, and ∼2.5 A/W at 850 nm, while the dark current was as low as 0.01 mA/cm2 at –2 V. Metal-oxide field-effect phototransistors were also studied. These lateral detectors were processed with three terminals for source, drain and gate contacts. The Ge quantum dot layers were sandwiched between pseudomorphically grown SiGe quantum wells. The detector devices were processed using a multi-finger comb structure with an isolated gate contact on top of each finger and patterned metal contacts on the side edges for source and drain. It was found that the photo-responsivity was increased by a factor of more than 20 when a proper gate bias was applied. With VG above threshold, the measured response was 350 and >30 mA/W at 1.31 and 1.55 µm, respectively. Properties of Si/Si1-xGex nanostructures were examined, in order to facilitate proper design of the above mentioned transistor types of photodetectors. The carrier recombination processes were characterized by photoluminescence measurements, and the results revealed a gradual change from spatially indirect to direct transitions in type II Si1-xGex islands with increased measurement temperature. Energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry of buried Ge islands produced at different temperatures indicated a gradual decrease of the Ge concentration with temperature, which was due to the enhanced intermixing of Si and Ge atoms. At a deposition temperature of 730°C the Ge concentration was as low as around 40 %. Finally, the thermal stability of the Si/SiGe(110) material system, which is a promising candidate for future CMOS technology due to its high carrier mobility, was investigated by high resolution X-ray diffraction reciprocal space mapping. Anisotropic strain relaxation was observed with maximum in-plane lattice mismatch in the [001] direction. / On the day of the defence date the status of article IV was Manuscript and the title was "A three-terminal Ge dot/SiGe quantum well MOSFET photodetector for near infrared light detection"; the status of article VI was Submitted and the title was "Band alignment studies in Si/Ge quantum dots based on optical and structural investigations"; the status of article VII was Manuscript and the title was "Thermal stability of SiGe/Si(110) investigated by high-resolution X-ray diffraction reciprocal space mapping".

The strain introduced by lattice mismatch is a built-in characteristic in Si/SiGe heterostructures, which has significant influences on various material properties. Proper design and precise control of strain within Si/SiGe heterostructures, i.e. the so-called “strain engineering”, have become a very important way not only for substantial performance enhancement of conventional microelectronic devices, but also to allow novel device concepts to be integrated with Si chips for new functions, e.g. Si-based optoelectronics. This thesis thus describes studies on two subjects of such strain-engineered Si/SiGe heterostructures grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). The first one focuses on the growth and characterizations of delicately strain-symmetrized Si/SiGe multi-quantum-well/superlattice structures on fully relaxed SiGe virtual substrates for light emission in the THz frequency range. The second one investigates the strain relaxation mechanism of thin SiGe layers during MBE growth and post-growth processes in non-conventional conditions. Two types of THz emitters, based on different quantum cascade (QC) intersubband transition schemes, were studied. The QC emitters using the diagonal transition between two adjacent wells were grown with Si/Si0.7Ge0.3 superlattices up to 100 periods. It was shown that nearly perfect strain symmetry in the superlattice with a high material quality was obtained. The layer parameters were precisely controlled with deviations of ≤ 2 Å in layer thickness and ≤ 1.5 at. % in Ge composition from the designed values. The fabricated emitter devices exhibited a dominating emission peak at ~13 meV (~3 THz), which was consistent with the design. An attempt to produce the first QC THz emitter based on the bound-to-continuum transition was made. The structures with a complicated design of 20 periods of active units were extremely challenging for the growth. Each unit contained 16 Si/Si0.724Ge0.276 superlattice layers, in which the thinnest one was only 8 Å. The growth parameters were carefully studied, and several samples with different boron δ-doping concentrations were grown at optimized conditions. Extensive material characterizations revealed a high crystalline quality of the grown structures with an excellent growth control, while the heavy δ-doping may introduce layer undulations as a result of the non-uniformity in the strain field. Moreover, carrier lifetime dynamics, which is crucial for the THz QC structure design, was also investigated. Strain-symmetrized Si/SiGe multi-quantum-well structures, designed for probing the carrier lifetime of intersubband transitions inside a well between heavy hole 1 (HH1) and light hole 1 (LH1) states with transition energies below the optical phonon energy, were grown on SiGe virtual substrates. The lifetime of the LH1 excited state was determined directly with pump-probe spectroscopy. The measurements indicated an increase of lifetime by a factor of ~2 due to the increasingly unconfined LH1 state, which agreed very well with the theory. It also showed a very long lifetime of several hundred picoseconds for the holes excited out of the well to transit back to the well through a diagonal process. Strained SiGe grown on Si (110) substrates has promising potentials for high-speed microelectronics devices due to the enhanced carrier mobility. Strain relaxation of SiGe/Si(110) subjected to different annealing treatments was studied by X-ray reciprocal space mapping. The in-plane lattice mismatch was found to be asymmetric with the major strain relaxation observed in the lateral [001] direction. It was concluded that this was associated to the formation and propagation of conventional a/2<110> dislocations oriented along [110]. This was different from the relaxation observed during growth, which was mainly along in-plane [110]. A novel MBE growth process to fabricate thin strain-relaxed Si0.6Ge0.4 virtual substrates involving low-temperature (LT) buffer layers was investigated. At a certain LT-buffer growth temperature, a dramatic increase in the strain relaxation accompanied with a decrease of surface roughness was observed in the top SiGe, together with a cross-hatch/cross-hatch-free transition in the surface morphology. It was explained by the association with a certain onset stage of the ordered/disordered transition during the growth of the LT-SiGe buffer. / Kisel(Si)-baserad mikroelektronik har utvecklats under en femtioårsperiod till att bli basen för vår nuvarande informationsteknologi. Förutom att integrera fler och mindre komponenter på varje kisel-chip så utvecklas metoder att modifiera och förbättra materialegenskaperna för att förbättra prestanda ytterligare. Ett sätt att göra detta är att kombinera kisel med germanium (Ge) bl.a. för att skapa kvantstrukturer av nanometer-storlek. Eftersom Ge-atomerna är större än Si-atomerna kan man skapa en töjning i materialet vilket kan förbättra egenskaperna, ex.vis hur snabbt laddningarna (elektronerna) rör sig i materialet. Genom att variera Gekoncentrationen i tunna skikt kan man skapa skikt som är antingen komprimerade eller expanderade och därmed ger möjlighet att göra strukturer för tillverkning av nya typer av komponenter för mikroelektronik eller optoelektronik. I detta avhandlingsarbete har Si/SiGe nanostrukturer tillverkats med molekylstråle-epitaxi-teknik (molecular beam epitaxy, MBE). Med denna teknik byggs materialet upp på ett substrat, atomlager för atomlager, med mycket god kontroll på sammansättningen av varje skikt. Samtidigt kan töjningen av materialet designas så att inga defekter skapas alternativt många defekter genereras på ett kontrollerat sätt. I denna avhandling beskrivs detaljerade studier av hur töjda i/SiGe-strukturer kan tillverkas och ge nya potentiella tillämpningar ex.vis som källa för infraröd strålning. Studierna av de olika töjda skikten har framför allt gjorts med avancerade röntgendiffraktionsmätningar och transmissionselektronmikroskopi.

This thesis investigates the reactive formation of Ni mono-gernanosilicide, NiSi1-uGeu, for contact metallization of future CMOS devices where Si1-xGex can be present in the gate, source and drain of a MOSFET. Although the investigation has been pursued with a strong focus on materials aspects, issues related to process integration in MOSFETs both on conventional bulk Si and ultra-thin body SOI have been taken into consideration. The thesis work has taken a balance between experimental studies and theoretical calculations. The interaction between Ni films and Si1-xGex substrates, polycrystalline (poly) as in the gate or single-crystal (sc) as in the source/drain, leads to the formation of a ternary solid solution NiSi1-uGeu with the MnP structure in a wide range of temperature from 450 to 850oC. A linear variation of the lattice parameters of the NiSi1-uGeu with u is determined. A number of key observations are made: (1) the agglomeration of NiSi1-uGeu on Si1-xGex at a lower temperature compared to that of NiSi on Si, (2) the absence of NiSi2 up to 850 oC when Ge is present, and (3) a substantial Ge out-diffusion from the NiSi1-xGex and a precipitation of Ge-richer SiGe around the NiSi1-uGeu grains. These observations are interpreted referring to the ternary phase diagram for the Ni-Si-Ge system presented in this work. Possible factors influencing the morphological stability of NiSi1-uGeu films on Si1-xGex are discussed: (1) mechanical strain in the epitaxial Si1-xGex, (2) the favorable formation of NiSi at the expense of NiGe, (3) grain growth in poly-Si1-xGex, and (4) grain grooving in NiSi1-uGeu on sc-Si1-xGex. Energetically, the former two factors have been found to play a comparable, yet major role in the morphological instability of NiSi1-uGeu. The inter-diffusion of Si and Ge in NiSi1-uGeu and Si1-xGex provides the kinetic pathway for the morphological evolution. On Si1-xGex epitaxially grown on Si(100), a strong preferential orientation of the resulting NiSi1-uGeu film is found; NiSi films formed on Si show no specific film texturing. Furthermore, layer sequence and layer thickness of Si/SiGe or SiGe/Si are found to strongly affect the film texture in the resulting NiSi1-uGeu. Epitaxy of NiSi on NiSi1-uGeu, and vice versa, occurs across the compositional boundary, which confirms Ni as the dominant diffusion species during germanosilicide formation. The presence of Ge reduces the contact resistivity for NiSi1-uGeu on p-tyep Si1-xGex, as expected. For poly-Si1-xGex doped by B to 1020cm-3, a contact resistivity of 9x10-8 Ωcm2, 5 times lower than for the corresponding NiSi/Si contact, is obtained. On n-type Si1-xGex doped by As to 1020 cm-3, the opposite is true regarding the effect of Ge and a contact resistivity of 2x10-5 Ωcm2, 20 times higher than for the corresponding NiSi/Si contact, is obtained. When formed in the source/drain regions of a MOSFET fabricated on ultra-thin body SOI, a severe lateral growth of NiSi and Ni2Si into the channel region is revealed if the initial Ni thickness is too thick and if the silicidation conditions are not carefully controlled. This leads to a Schottky contact S/D MOSFET due to the consumption of the entire source/drain. In order to realize a low source/drain resistance for MOSFETs on ultra-thin SOI, satisfying the Roadmap recommendation for the 45-nm technology node, simplified calculations have been performed and an elevated source/drain structure is clearly shown to be advantageous. / QC 20101005

Field-effect transistor technologies have been critical building blocks for satellite systems since their introduction into the microelectronics industry. The extremely high cost of launching payloads into orbit necessitates systems to have small form factor, ultra low-power consumption, and reliable lifetime operation, while satisfying the performance requirements of a given application. Silicon-based complementary metal-oxide-semiconductors (Si CMOS) have traditionally been able to adequately meet these demands when coupled with radiation hardening techniques that have been developed over years of invested research. However, as customer demands increase, pushing the limits of system throughput, noise, and speed, alternative technologies must be employed. Silicon-germanium BiCMOS platforms have been identfied as a technology candidate for meeting the performance criteria of these pioneering satellite systems and deep space applications, contingent on their ability to be hardened to radiation-induced damage. Given that SiGe technology is a relative new- comer to terrestrial and extra-terrestrial applications in radiation-rich environments, the same wealth of knowledge of time-tested radiation hardening methodologies has not been established as it has for Si CMOS. Although SiGe BiCMOS technology has been experimentally proven to be inherently tolerant to total-ionizing dose damage mechanism, the single event susceptibility of this technology remains a primary concern. The objective of this research is to characterize the physical mechanisms that drive the origination of ion-induced transient terminal currents in SiGe HBTs that subsequently lead to a wide range of possible single event phenomena. Building upon this learning, a variety of device-level hardening methodologies are explored and tested for efficacy.

The advent of high-frequency silicon-based technologies has enabled the design of mixed-signal circuits that incorporate analog, RF, and digital circuit components to build cost-effective system-on-a-chip solutions. Emerging applications provide great incentive for continued scaling of transistor performance, requiring careful attention to mismatch, noise, and reliability concerns. If these mixed-signal technologies are to be employed within space-based electronic systems, they must also demonstrate reliability in radiation-rich environments. SiGe BiCMOS technology in particular is positioned as an excellent candidate to satisfy all of these requirements. The objective of this research is to develop predictive modeling tools that can be used to design new mixed-signal technologies and assess their reliability on Earth and in extreme environments. Ultimately, the goal is to illuminate the interaction of device- and circuit-level reliability mechanisms and establish best practices for modeling these effects in modern circuits. To support this objective, several specific areas have been targeted first, including a TCAD-based approach to identify performance-limiting regions in SiGe HBTs, measurement and modeling of carrier transport parameters that are essential for predictive TCAD, and measurement of device-level single-event transients to better understand the physical origins and implications for device design. These tasks provide the foundation for the bulk of this research, which addresses circuit-level reliability challenges through the application of novel mixed-mode TCAD techniques. All of the individual tasks are tied together by a guiding theme: to develop a holistic understanding of the challenges faced by emerging broadband technologies by coordinating results from material, device, and circuit studies.

Les contraintes font maintenant partie des " boosters " de la microélectronique au même titre que le SOI (silicium sur isolant) ou le couple grille métallique / diélectrique haute permittivité. Appliquer une contrainte au niveau du canal des transistors MOSFETs (transistors à effet de champ à structure métal-oxyde-semiconducteur) permet d'augmenter de façon significative la mobilité des porteurs de charge. Il y a par conséquent un besoin de caractériser les déformations induites par ces contraintes à l'échelle nanométrique. L'holographie électronique en champ sombre est une technique de MET (Microscopie Électronique en Transmission) inventée en 2008 qui permet d'effectuer des cartographies quantitatives de déformation avec une résolution spatiale nanométrique et un champ de vue micrométrique. Dans cette thèse, la technique a été développée sur le microscope Titan du CEA. Différentes expériences ont été réalisées afin d'optimiser la préparation d'échantillon, les conditions d'illumination, d'acquisition et de reconstruction des hologrammes. La sensibilité et la justesse de mesure de la technique ont été évaluées en caractérisant des couches minces épitaxiées de Si_{1-x}Ge_{x}/Si et en effectuant des comparaisons avec des simulations mécaniques par éléments finis. Par la suite, la technique a été appliquée à la caractérisation de réseaux recuits de SiGe(C)/Si utilisés dans la conception de nouveaux transistors multi-canaux ou multi-fils. L'influence des phénomènes de relaxation, tels que l'interdiffusion du Ge et la formation des clusters de β-SiC a été étudiée. Enfin, l'holographie en champ sombre a été appliquée sur des transistors pMOS placés en déformation uniaxiale par des films stresseurs de SiN et des sources/drains de SiGe. Les mesures ont notamment permis de vérifier l'additivité des deux procédés de déformation.

In this thesis, three different types of low-noise amplifiers (LNA’s) have been designed using a 0.25 mm SiGe BiCMOS process. Firstly, a single-stage amplifier has been designed with 11 dB gain and 3.7 dB noise figure at 8 GHz. Secondly, a cascode two-stage LNA with 16 dB gain and 3.8 dB noise figure at 8 GHz is also described. Finally, a cascade two-stage LNA with a wide-band RF performance (a gain larger than unity between 2-17 GHz and a noise figure below 5 dB between 1.7 GHz and 12 GHz) is presented. These SiGe BiCMOS LNA’s could for example be used in the microwave receivers modules of advanced phased array antennas, potentially making those more cost- effective and also more compact in size in the future. All LNA designs presented in this report have been implemented with circuit layouts and validated through simulations using Cadence RF Spectre.

Automotive Radars have introduced various functions on automobiles for driver’s safety and comfort, as part of the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) including Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), collision warning or avoidance, blind spot surveillance and parking assistance. Although such radar systems with 24 GHz carrier frequency are already in use but due to some regulatory issues, recently a permanent band has been allocated at 77-81 GHz, allowing for long-term development of the radar service. In fact, switchover to the new band is mandatory by 2014. A frequency multiplier will be one of the key components for such a millimeter wave automotive radar system because there are limitations in direct implementation of low phase noise oscillators at high frequencies. A practical way to build a cost-effective and stable source at higher frequency is to use an active multiplier preceded by a high spectral purity VCO operating at a lower frequency. Recent improvements in the performance of SiGe technology allow the silicon microelectronics to advance into areas previously restricted to compound semiconductor devices and make it a strong competitor for automotive radar applications at 79 GHz. This thesis presents the design of active frequency doubler circuits at 20 GHz in a commercially available SiGe BiCMOS technology and at 40GHz in SiGe bipolar technology (Infineon-B7h200 design). Buffer/amplifier circuits are included at output stages to drive 50 Ω load. The frequency doubler at 20 GHz is based on an emitter-coupled pair operating in class-B configuration at 1.8 V supply voltage. Pre-layout simulations show its conversion gain of 10 dB at -5 dBm input, fundamental suppression of 25dB and NF of 12dB. Input and output impedance matching networks are designed to match 50 Ω at both sides. The millimeter wave frequency doubler is designed for 5 V supply voltage and has the Gilbert cell-based differential architecture where both RF and LO ports are tied together to act as a frequency doubler. Both pre-layout and post-layout simulation results are presented and compared together. The extracted circuit has a conversion gain of 8 dB at -8 dB input, fundamental suppression of 20 dB, NF of 12 dB and it consumes 42 mA current from supply. The layout occupies an area of 0.12 mm2 without pads and baluns at both input and output ports. The frequency multiplier circuits have been designed using Cadence Design Tool.

A summary of total dose effects observe in advanced Silicon Germanium (SiGe) Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors (HBTs) is presented in this work. The principal driving froces behin the increased use of SiGe BiCMOS technology in space based electronics systems are outlined in the motivation Section of Chapter I. This is followed by a discussion of the strained layer Si/SiGe material structure and relevant fabrication techniques used in the development of the first generation of this technology. A comprehensive description of the device performance is presented. Chapter II presents an overview of radiation physics as it applies to microelectronic devices. Several sources of radiation are discussed including the environments encountered by satellites in different orbital paths around the earth. The particle types, interaction mechanisms and damage nomenclature are described. Proton irradiation experiments to analyze worst case displacement and ionization damage are examined in chapter III. A description of the test conditions is first presented, followed by the experimental results on the observed dc and ac transistor performance metrics with incident radiation. The impact of the collector doping level on the degradation is discussed. In a similar fashion, gamma irradiation experiments to focus on ionization only effects are presented in chapter IV. The experimental design and dc results are first presented, followed by a comparison of degradation under proton irradiation. Additional proton dose rate experiments conducted to further investigate observed differences between proton and gamma results are presented.

Transistor mismatch is a crucial design issue in high precision analog circuits, and is investigated here for the first time in SiGe HBTs. The goal of this work is to study the effects of mismatch under extreme conditions including radiation, high temperature, and low temperature. One portion of this work reports collector current mismatch data as a function of emitter geometry both before and after 63 MeV proton exposure for first-generation SiGe HBTs with a peak cut-off frequency of 60 GHz. However, minimal changes in device-to-device mismatch after radiation exposure were experienced. Another part of the study involved measuring similar devices at different temperatures ranging from 298K to 377K. As a general trend, it was observed that device-to-device mismatch improved with increasing temperature.