Microwave Sources

Semiconductor Sources


Reference:
Samuel Y. Liao
S. M. Sze
Prof. D. Kannadassan,
School of Electronics Engineering
1
Semiconductor Microwave Sources
Low Power microwave generators
Transferred Electron Devices (TEDs)
Gunn diode
LSA diode
InP diode
CdTe diode
Avalanche Transit Time Devices (ATTDs)
Read diode
IMPATT diode
TRAPATT diode
BARITT diode
2
Mini-review on semiconductor Physics
Atomic Structure
Lattice structure: Inter atomic distance
Energy band Theory
a
Indirect bandgap
Direct bandgap
3
Carrier Transport
Mobility
Mini-review on semiconductor Physics
4
Transferred Electron Devices (TEDs)
At some situations, the electrons (carriers) shall transfer from one region (x-y-z) or
momentum (k) space to another. This effect is referred as Transferred electron effect.
Transferred electron effect is generally happening when the electron is
moving/transferring between various levels of conduction and valance bands. Its
happening in most of the Direct bandgap devices. The most popular TED is Gunn
diode.

If the transfer is happening in region, it is specially called real space transfer electron
effect. With this effect, most important device is Real space transfer diode

Momentum
5
Gunn Diode
Gunn diode, is the first kind of Transferred Electron Device, is the most
important microwave source: useful in local oscillator. It can able to generate
Microwaves from 1GHz to 300GHz (0.3THz).

In 1963, J. B. Gunn of IBM discovered a periodic fluctuations in current for the
given DC voltage across a n-type GaAs specimen. The periodic oscillation are in
microwave frequencies and its inversely proportional to length of the specimen.
This is called Gunn Effect. It also happens in many direct bandgap semiconductor
materials like InP, GaAsP, InGaAs, GaN, InGaN, InAs..

cathode
Anode
GaAs
Bulk
5ns
0.22ns
~4GHz
Source: J. B. Gunn, IBM, 1963
6
Gunn Diode DC characteristics
When we sweep the voltage across the n-
type GaAs specimen (of length L),

The current increases initially, it reaches
maximum at voltage V
P
(Peak Potential).
Immediately, it starts to decrease till voltage V
V

(valley voltage). It increases after that.

The region where current decrease for
increase in voltage (dV/dI = -ve) is called
Negative differential resistance (NDR)
region.
This NDR region is responsible for
microwave oscillations. The explanation for
the effect is called Transferred Electron
Effect.
Electric field [KV/cm]
D
r
i
f
t

v
e
l
o
c
i
t
y

NDR
3KV/cm
[In Our Lab]
NDR
7
Ridley Watkins Hilsum (RWH) theory
OR
Two Valley Theory
(of Transferred Electron Effect)
GaAs has two valleys at its conduction band, called Lower
valley and Upper velley.
The lower valley is narrow and slope is higher than
upper valley

Due to this , at lower valley, since

denominator is higher so effective mass of electron is low. So
its mobility or drift velocity is very high. But at upper valley,
mobility is very low since slope is very low, since:

2
2
dk
E d
2
2
*
dk
E d
m

*
0
m
e
n


Valley Effective mass (m*) Mobility (cm
2
/V.s)
Lower 0.068 8000
Upper 1.2 180
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DC characteristics and Two valley theory
Till Vp, the electrons at valence band moves to lower valley of conductions band,
thus it has high mobility.
After Vp, the electrons at lower valley, the electrons acquire more potential energy
and move to upper valley where the mobility is low, thus current decrease.


After V
V
, the current increases, as electrons return to lower valley.
9
Use of NDR region for microwave oscillation
Consider: A gunn diode is biased in NDR region, usually in voltage average
between peak velley points. So equivalently, its a resistor with negative sign.
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-R Z
L

IN
2
V P
DC
V V
V

Always ; 1



IN
L
L
IN
Z R
Z R
For any values of R and Z
L
Gunn mount
High Filed Domain Theory
The oscillations in TED, i.e. Gunn diode,
also explained by high field domain
theory.
When the diode is biased in NRD region,
respective electric field E
0
> E
T
At time T=0, at low fields, the
accumulation of charge (electrons) is
encouraged near cathode. This
accumulated charges attracts and forms
another charge cloud (positively charged),
called Dipole
As time increases, the accumulation of
electron increase and forms high amplitude
of dipole. This forms a high field and it
drifts. At a time, it reaches anode and
drains the dipole. This dipole forms again
and this effect lead to oscillations

11
Dipole
0
1
f v
L
T
d

C
A
0
1
f v
L
T
d

12
Mode of Operation
It has been observed that the Gunn diode can oscillate without any
resonance circuit, so called Self Oscillating Diode. However, using
resonance circuit the tunnability and high power delivery is possible.
Based on the connection mode, the operations of Gunn diode changes,
such operations are classified as Mode

Modes of operation:
Gunn Oscillation Modes
Transit time domain mode
Delayed domain mode
Quenched domain mode
Limited Space charge Accumulation (LSA) Mode
Stable Amplification mode and Bias-circuit oscillation mode
13
Mode, frequency and doping-length product
14
Source: Samuel Y. Liao
Gunn Oscillation Mode
It is a self-Oscillation mode, where the doping concentration (n
0
) and active region
length (L) of device decide the oscillation frequency. The high field domain and
dipole space charge accumulation, and transition of both, forms the oscillation. This
mode occurs when Ln
0
>10
12
.
Transit time domain mode: During dipole movement, the high field will move
entire length of device and produces the oscillation, therefore the transit time
decides the time period of oscillation, so called Transit time domain mode.
However, maximum of 10% efficiency with sine-wave form output, since the
domain formation and transition take maximum energy. Therefore with and without
resonators, the Gunn diode oscillates

15
Quenched domain mode: When the
resonant circuits operating frequency is
higher than transit time frequency of Gunn
diode (f
R
> f
0
), the high field is quenched
before it reaches anode, almost at middle
of diode. In other words, the oscillation
begins without the domain reaches the
anode, and process repeats again within the
transit time. Thus efficiency increases upto
13 to 15%.

Delayed domain mode: By optimizing the
device length and doping, transit time can
be adjusted so that the field will be lesser
than threshold. So the next oscillation is
delayed, and results almost square
waveform with high efficiency of 20%.
16
M. Shaw et al, 1979
-R Z
L
f
0
2
V P
DC
V V
V

f
R
Limited Space charge accumulation mode
This mode can be enabled by taking n
0
L < 10
13
(cm
-2
).
Thus the accumulation of electron near cathode (without its respective positive
region, or no dipole formation) makes the field as like a step function. During
oscillation, the domain size increases against high field region and move towards
anode. This process repeats many times within transit time of device, thus
frequency of operation and efficiency increases (more than 20%)
17
Stable Amplification mode
The negative resistance region of DC characteristics has been utilized in this mode.
18
-R Z
L

IN
2
V P
DC
V V
V

Always ; 1



IN
L
L
IN
Z R
Z R
Mode of operation
19
Practical Gunn diodes
20
Active region
Dead zone