Characterizing self-heating dynamics using cyclostationary measurements

Self-heating in surround gate (e.g., nanosheet, nanowire, and FinFET) transistors degrades their on-current performance and reduces their lifetime. If a transistor heats/cools with time constants much shorter than the inverse of the operating frequency, predictable, frequency-independent performance is expected; if not, the operating frequency must be optimized for the highest performance. Typically, time constants are measured by expensive, ultra-fast instruments with high temporal resolution. Instead, here, we demonstrate an alternate, inexpensive, cyclostationary measurement technique to characterize self-heating (and cooling) with sub-microsecond resolution. The results are independently confirmed by direct imaging of the transient heating/cooling of the channel temperature by the thermoreflectance method. Routine use of the proposed technique will help improve the design of the surrounding gate transistors and shorten their design cycle.