Monte Carlo calculations of quantum yield in inhomogeneous PtSi/p-Si Schottky barriers

A. Sellai*, P. Dawson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)


Monte Carlo calculations of quantum yield in PtSi/p-Si infrared detectors are carried out taking into account the presence of a spatially distributed barrier potential. In the 1-4 μm wavelength range it is found that the spatial inhomogeneity of the barrier has no significant effect on the overall device photoresponse. However, above λ = 4.0 μm and particularly as the cut-off wavelength (μ ≈ 5.5 μm) is approached, these calculations reveal a difference between the homogeneous and inhomogeneous barrier photoresponse which becomes increasingly significant and exceeds 50% at λ = 5.3 μm. It is, in fact, the inhomogeneous barrier which displays an increased photoyield, a feature that is confirmed by approximate analytical calculations assuming a symmetric Gaussian spatial distribution of the barrier. Furthermore, the importance of the silicide layer thickness in optimizing device efficiency is underlined as a trade-off between maximizing light absorption in the silicide layer and optimizing the internal yield. The results presented here address important features which determine the photoyield of PtSi/Si Schottky diodes at energies below the Si absorption edge and just above the Schottky barrier height in particular.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)700-704
Number of pages5
JournalSemiconductor Science and Technology
Issue number7
Publication statusPublished - Jul 1998

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
  • Materials Science(all)
  • Condensed Matter Physics

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