Tunneling Current Calculation Using the Linear-Bound Potential Model

Abstract

A model of the tunneling current through an ultrathin insulating barrier comingfrom carriers in an inversion layer using a simple linear potential model ispresented. This model provides analytical expressions for the wavefunctions ofthese carriers and simple equations to obtain numerically their correspondingeigenvalues. These expressions can be inserted in the tunneling current equationallowing a more simple understanding of the physics involved in this tunnelingproblem. As an example, one can fit the experimental results for the leakagecurrent obtained by different authors in planar metal oxide semiconductor fieldeffect transistors and also in a LaAlO3/SrTiO3 and a HfO2/Ge bilayer. Themodification of the tunneling current when the dielectric constant is increased,a subject of interest in device applications, is explored.