Thermally Stable Ruthenium Contact for Robust <i>p</i>-Type Tellurium Transistors

Tellurium (Te) is attractive for <i>p</i>-channel transistors due to its high hole mobility. Despite having a low thermal budget suitable for back-end-of-line (BEOL) monolithic integration, the practical realization of Te transistors is hindered by its thermal stability. In this work, we investigate thermal stability for Te thin films grown via scalable thermal evaporation. Our findings identify ruthenium as a more thermally stable contact for <i>p</i>-type Te transistors, capable of withstanding temperatures up to 250 °C. Ruthenium exhibits significantly lower diffusivity in Te compared to other contact metals commonly used such as nickel and palladium. Using the transfer-length method, we measured a contact resistance of 1.25 kΩ·μm at the ruthenium-tellurium interface. Additionally, the incorporation of high-κ ZrO<sub>2</sub> encapsulation not only suppresses the sublimation of the Te channel at elevated temperatures but also serves as the gate dielectric in top-gate devices operating at 1 V, achieving an on/off current ratio of 10<sup>5</sup>.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Nano Letters
Published
2025-02-28
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c06553
Citations
6
Primary Topic
Graphene research and applications
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
3.11

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Thermally Stable Ruthenium Contact for Robust p-Type Tellurium Transistors

D. C. Chrzan, Ali Javey, Hyong Min Kim, Naoki Higashitarumizu et al.
6 citations
Nano Letters
Graphene research and applications
3.11
article

Thermally Stable Ruthenium Contact for Robust p-Type Tellurium Transistors

D. C. Chrzan, Ali Javey, Hyong Min Kim, Naoki Higashitarumizu, I. K. M. Reaz Rahman, M. Virginia P. Altoé, Shifan Wang, Joel W. Ager, Inha Kim, James Bullock, Shu Wang, Taehoon Kim
article en
6 citations

Abstract

Tellurium (Te) is attractive for <i>p</i>-channel transistors due to its high hole mobility. Despite having a low thermal budget suitable for back-end-of-line (BEOL) monolithic integration, the practical realization of Te transistors is hindered by its thermal stability. In this work, we investigate thermal stability for Te thin films grown via scalable thermal evaporation. Our findings identify ruthenium as a more thermally stable contact for <i>p</i>-type Te transistors, capable of withstanding temperatures up to 250 °C. Ruthenium exhibits significantly lower diffusivity in Te compared to other contact metals commonly used such as nickel and palladium. Using the transfer-length method, we measured a contact resistance of 1.25 kΩ·μm at the ruthenium-tellurium interface. Additionally, the incorporation of high-κ ZrO<sub>2</sub> encapsulation not only suppresses the sublimation of the Te channel at elevated temperatures but also serves as the gate dielectric in top-gate devices operating at 1 V, achieving an on/off current ratio of 10<sup>5</sup>.

Nano LettersVol. 25(10)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (US), The University of Melbourne (AU), Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BD), University of California System (US), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JP), Kavli Energy NanoScience Institute (US), Foundry (United Kingdom) (GB), Molecular Foundry, University of California, Berkeley (US)
Basic Energy Sciences, Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology
Openalex Percentile: Top 9%
Graphene research and applications
3.11
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.