Investigation of Electrical Behavior of Au/Ti/AlN/Si Schottky Diode via Gaussian Distribution Barrier Modeling

This study presents a comprehensive analysis of the temperature-dependent electrical behavior of Au/Ti/AlN/n-Si Schottky diode using both experimental measurements and theoretical modeling. The key diode parameters, namely the ideality factor (<i>n</i>) and the zero-bias barrier height (ϕ _<i>B</i>0) were extracted over the temperature range of 100-400 K and were found to exhibit a strong dependence on temperature. The experimental results revealed that "ϕ _<i>B</i>0" increases and "<i>n</i>" decreases with rising temperature, consistent with the presence of a Gaussian distribution of barrier heights and a transition toward thermionic emission-dominated transport. A theoretical model incorporating barrier inhomogeneities was employed and yielding results in close agreement with experimental trends, particularly for ϕ _<i>B</i>0. Modified Richardson plots confirmed the validity of the Gaussian distribution model, allowing for accurate determination of the average barrier height and Richardson constant. While the theoretical predictions matched the experimental behavior well at high temperatures, deviations at lower temperatures showed the influence of interface states and nonideal effects. The observed behavior indicates that the charge transport mechanism is influenced by spatial variations in the potential barrier, particularly at lower temperatures.