Laser-Induced Current Transients in Silicon-Germanium HBTs

Device-level current transients are induced by injecting carriers using two-photon absorption from a subbandgap pulsed laser and recorded using wideband transmission and measurement equipment. These transients exhibit three distinct temporal trends that depend on laser pulse energy as well as the transverse and vertical charge generation location. The nature of the current transient is controlled by both the behavior of the subcollector-substrate junction and isolation biasing. However, substrate potential modulation, due to deformation of the subcollector-substrate depletion region, is the dominant mechanism affecting transient characteristics.