Comparison between theoretical and experimental results for energy states of two-dimensional electron gas in pseudomorphically strained InAs high-electron-mobility transistors

Abstract

The energy states of a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in high-electron-mobility transistors with a pseudomorphically strained InAs channel (PHEMTs) were analyzed rigorously using a recently established theory that takes into account the nonparabolicity of the conduction band of the channel layer. The sheet density of the 2DEG in InxGa1−xAs-PHEMTs and the drain I–V characteristics of those devices were calculated theoretically and compared with the density and characteristics obtained experimentally. Not only the calculated threshold voltage (VTH) but also the calculated transconductance agreed fairly well with the corresponding values obtained experimentally. When the effects of the compositions of the InxGa1−xAs subchannel layer in the composite channel and the channel layer on energy states of 2DEG were investigated in order to establish a guiding principle for a design of the channel structure in PHEMTs, it was found that VTH is determined by the effective conduction-band offset energy ΔEC between the InAlAs barrier and the channel layers.