Modelling of a thin-film transistor based on the carbon nanotubes network and ESD circuit simulation by SPICE

Abstract Carbon nanotubes are considered one of the most promising candidate materials for Si. However, there has been limited research on modeling devices based on carbon nanotubes and performing discharge (ESD) protection simulations for circuits composed of carbon nanotube-based devices. Within this article, the current characteristics of network carbon nanotube field-effect transistors (CNT-TFT) with micrometer size are studied, and the devices with channel length L g = 11 μm and width of W = 108 μm are modelled. It is found that the simulation curves of the model are in good agreement with the experimental results. In this article, the ESD behavior modeling method is introduced. By utilizing this method, a bidirectional diode device model was programmed and integrated into an inverter built with CNT-TFT models. When an ESD positive pulse is applied between the input and ground terminals (PS mode), it is found that the simulation results of the circuit have passed the 500 V human body model (HBM) ESD pulse test in the PS mode, thereby achieving ESD protection simulation for carbon-based integrated circuits.