Field-Effect Electroluminescence Spectra of Reverse-Biased PN Junctions in Silicon Device for Microdisplay

Light emission has been observed from silicon devices in the reverse avalanche mode is reported. A Si-PMOSFET LED is manufactured in a standard 3- μm CMOS technology, with no changes to the process, is described. Under the breakdown condition, the reverse-biased junction configuration of the silicon light-emitting device emit light in a broad spectrum from 450 to 800 nm with characteristic peaks around ~ 650 nm. The photon emission energy spectrum is compared to the hot electron energy distribution . Further, it successfully demonstrates the possibility of quantifying the optical performance in an integrated micro-display array consisting of five in-parallel connected PMOSFETs based on the silicon light source, thus providing high functional diversification of CMOS integrated circuits with high-frequency capability of the order of GHz. The demonstration of such a LED that can be easily integrated into CMOS fabrication process is an important step toward optical interconnects.