Zener current contribution to the resistance-area product of 8- to 14-µm Hg1-xCdxTe photodiodes

The effect of Zener current, due to the internal field emission in the space-charge region of an n
⁺
-p junction, on the zero-bias resistance-area product R
o
A of narrow-bandgap HgCdTe photodiodes has been investigated theoretically. It is shown that the contribution of this mechanism in these photodiodes could appreciably lower the R
o
A product in the temperature range of 10 to 100 K.