Single-electron tunneling in a silicon-on-insulator layer embedding an artificial dislocation network

Abstract

A two-dimensional dislocation network artificially embedded in a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) layer was examined as the source of lattice strain to generate a periodic potential. A screw dislocation network with the period of 20nm was formed in an SOI layer using a twist bonding of two SOI wafers. n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors using the dislocation-embedded SOI layer showed an oscillation of drain current with the gate voltage at the temperatures below 40K. This oscillation is ascribed to the single-electron tunneling through the spatially modulated potential. The results suggest that the dislocation network works as the strain source to form the potential array.