Lecture 17

OUTLINE
The MOS Capacitor
(contd)
Small-signal
capacitance
(C-V characteristics)

Reading: Pierret 16.4; Hu 5.6

 S and W vs. VG
(p-type Si)
2 F

S:
0

accumulation

2
qN A si
2Cox (VG VFB )
1
s
1
2
qN A si
2Cox

VFB depletion VT inversion

accumulation

2 Si (2F )
qN A

2
2 SiS
Si
2Cox (VG VFB )
1
W

1
qN A
Cox
qN A si

VFB depletion VT inversion

EE130/230M Spring 2013

(for VFB VG VT )

VG

WT

W:

VG

Lecture 17, Slide 2

(for VFB VG VT )

Total Charge Density in Si,

Qs
Q C (V (p-type
V )
Si)
acc

ox

FB

depletion

accumulation

VFB

accumulation

inversion

VT
depletion

VFB

inversion

VG

accumulation

depletion

inversion

VT
VG

Qdep qN AW
accumulation

Qs Qacc Qdep Qinv

VG

depletion

VFB

0
inversion

VT

VG

VT

Qinv
slope = -Cox

Qinv Cox (VG VT )

EE130/230M Spring 2013

VFB

Lecture 17, Slide 3

MOS Capacitance
Measurement

VG is scanned slowly
MOS Capacitor
Capacitive current d
to vac is measured

C-V Meter

iac

vac

GATE

Semiconductor

EE130/230M Spring 2013

Lecture 17, Slide 4

dvac
iac C
dt
dQGATE
dQs
C

dVG
dVG

MOS C-V Characteristics

(p-type Si)
accumulation

depletion

inversion

VG
VFB

VT

dQs
C
dVG

Qinv

slope = -Cox

Cox

Ideal C-V curve:

VG
VFB
accumulation

EE130/230M Spring 2013

Lecture 17, Slide 5

VT
depletion

inversion

Capacitance in
Accumulation
(p-type Si)
As the gate voltage is varied, incremental
charge is added (or subtracted) to (or from) the
gate and substrate.
The incremental charges are separated by the
M
O
S
gate oxide.
Q
Q

-Q

dQacc
C
Cox
dVG

Cox
EE130/230M Spring 2013

Lecture 17, Slide 6

Flat-Band Capacitance
(p-type Si)
At the flat-band condition, variations in VG give
rise to the addition/subtraction of incremental
charge in the substrate, at a depth LD
LD is the extrinsic Debye Length, a characteristic screening
distance, or the distance where the electric field emanating
from a perturbing charge falls off by a factor of 1/e

Si kT
LD
q2 N A

Cox

CDebye

EE130/230M Spring 2013

1
1
LD

CFB Cox Si
Lecture 17, Slide 7

Capacitance in Depletion
(p-type Si)
As the gate voltage is varied, the depletion
width varies.
Incremental charge is effectively added/subtracted
at a depth W in the substrate.
M

W
-Q

Cox
EE130/230M Spring 2013

dQdep
dVG

2(VG VFB )
1

2
qN A Si
Cox

Cdep

1
1
1
1 W

C Cox Cdep Cox Si

Lecture 17, Slide 8

Capacitance in Inversion
(p-type Si)
CASE 1: Inversion-layer charge can be
supplied/removed quickly enough to
respond to changes in gate voltage.

Incremental charge is effectively

added/subtracted
at the
Q
surface
Time required to build inversionMof the
O substrate.
S
WT

layer
charge = 2NAo/ni , where
o = minority-carrier lifetime at
surface
dQ

Cox
EE130/230M Spring 2013

Lecture 17, Slide 9

inv

dVG

Cox

Capacitance in Inversion
(p-type Si)
CASE 2: Inversion-layer charge cannot be
supplied/removed quickly enough to
respond to changes in gate voltage.

Incremental charge is effectively

1
1
added/subtracted
at1a
Q

depth W
in
the
substrate.
C C
C
MT
O
S
ox

WT
Q

Cox
EE130/230M Spring 2013

Cdep

dep

1 WT

Cox Si
1
2(2 F )
1

Cox
qN A Si C min

Lecture 17, Slide 10

Supply of Substrate
Charge
(p-type
Si)
Accumulation:
Depletion:

Inversion:

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Case 1

Lecture 17, Slide 11

Case 2

MOS Capacitor vs. MOS

Transistor C-V
(p-type Si)
C

MOS transistor at any f,

MOS capacitor at low f, or
quasi-static C-V

Cmax=Cox
CFB

MOS capacitor at high f

Cmin
accumulation

EE130/230M Spring 2013

VFB

depletion

VT

Lecture 17, Slide 12

inversion

VG

Quasi-Static C-V
Measurement
(p-type
Si)
C
Cmax=Cox
CFB

Cmin
accumulation

VFB

depletion

VT

inversion

VG

The quasi-static C-V characteristic is obtained by

slowly ramping the gate voltage (< 0.1V/s), while
measuring the gate current IG with a very
sensitive
DC2013
ammeter.
C is
calculated
from IG =
EE130/230M Spring
Lecture
17, Slide
13

Deep Depletion
(p-type Si)
If VG is scanned quickly, Qinv cannot respond to the
change in VG. Then the increase in substrate charge
density Qs must come from an increase in depletion
charge density Qdep
depletion depth W increases as VG increases
C decreases as VG increases

C
Cox

Cmin
VFB
EE130/230M Spring 2013

VT

Lecture 17, Slide 14

VG

MOS C-V Characteristic for

n-type Si
MOS transistor at any f, C
MOS capacitor at low f, or
quasi-static C-V

Cmax=Cox
CFB

MOS capacitor at high f

accumulation

EE130/230M Spring 2013

VT

Cmin
depletion

VFB

Lecture 17, Slide 15

inversion

VG

Examples: C-V
Characteristics
C

QS

Cox

HF-Capacitor
VFB

VT

VG

Does the QS or the HF-capacitor C-V

characteristic apply?
(1)MOS capacitor, f=10kHz
(2)MOS transistor, i=1MHz
(3)MOS capacitor, slow VG ramp
(4)MOS transistor, slow VG ramp

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Lecture 17, Slide 16

Example: Effect of
Doping
How would the normalized C-V characteristic
below change if the substrate doping NA were
increased?
VFB
VT
Cmin

C/Cox
1

VFB
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VT

Lecture 17, Slide 17

Example: Effect of Oxide

Thickness
How would the normalized C-V characteristic
below change if the oxide thickness xo were
decreased?
VFB
VT
Cmin

C/Cox
1

VFB
EE130/230M Spring 2013

VT

Lecture 17, Slide 18