Novel three-terminal negative differential conductance device in silicon: The hot-electron phonon-emission field-effect transistor

The operation of a three-terminal, laterally-patterned negative differential conductance (NDC) device, a hot-electron phonon-emission field-effect transistor (HEPEFET), fabricated in a high-mobility strained Si quantum well is presented. The HEPEFET device design consists of an etch-defined point contact or wire geometry. Bistable switching behavior is observed in both voltage- and current-controlled modes of operation. The ballistic nature of the electron transport makes the device potentially attractive for high-speed, low power circuit applications.