Temperature-Dependent – Characteristics of a Vertical Tunnel FET

We report on the experimental temperature-dependent characteristics of vertical In_0.53Ga_0.47As tunnel field-effect transistors (TFETs) at low drain bias to provide key insight into its device operation and design. Leakage floor (I_OFF) is determined by the ungated p⁺-i-n⁺ reverse bias leakage and is dominated by Shockley-Read-Hall generation-recombination current. The temperature dependence of subthreshold slope arises from tunneling into mid-gap states at the oxide-semiconductor interface, followed by thermal emission into the conduction band. At intermediate gate voltages, pure band-to-band tunneling dominates, while at higher gate voltages, current transport is diffusion limited. The temperature-dependent study of In_0.53Ga_0.47As TFET highlights the importance of passivating the III-V and dielectric interface.