Semi-conductor device with programmable response
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsAli Afzali-Ardakani, Tze-chiang Chen, Kailash Gopalakrishnan, Bahman Hekmatshoartabari, Young H. Kwark
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Abstract
An apparatus with a programmable response includes a semiconductor device with a junction formed thereon, the junction having a built-in potential, a quantum well element proximate to the junction that provides an energy well within a depletion region of the junction. The energy well comprises one or more donor energy states that support electron trapping, and/or one or more acceptor energy states that support hole trapping; thereby modulating the built-in potential of the junction. The semiconductor device may be a diode, a bipolar diode, a transistor, or the like. A corresponding method is also disclosed herein.
Claims20
A programmable two-terminal semiconductor diode device, comprising:
- a junction in electrical communication with two terminals, the junction having a built-in potential;
- a quantum well element proximate to the junction that provides an energy well within a depletion region of the junction;
- the energy well comprising one or more donor energy states that support electron trapping and/or one or more acceptor energy states that support hole trapping;
- the built-in potential of the junction corresponding to a net polarity of holes and electrons trapped by the one or more donor energy states and/or one or more acceptor energy states;
- wherein current-voltage characteristics of the two-terminal semiconductor diode device are programmed by applying an electrical signal across the two terminals to cause a net polarity of holes and electrons to be trapped by the one or more donor energy states and/or one or more acceptor energy states.
A method for obtaining a programmable response, the method comprising:
- providing a semiconductor device with:
- a junction in electrical communication with two terminals, the junction having a built-in potential,
- a quantum well element proximate to the junction that provides an energy well within a depletion region of the junction,
- the energy well comprising one or more donor energy states that support electron trapping and/or one or more acceptor energy states that support hole trapping,
- the built-in potential of the junction corresponding to a net polarity of holes and electrons trapped by the one or more donor energy states and/or one or more acceptor energy states,
- applying a programming signal to the semiconductor device to cause a net polarity of holes and electron to be trapped by the one or more donor energy states and/or one or more acceptor energy states.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.