Simulation of Tunnel Diode I–V Characteristics with Photocurrent and Phonon-Assisted Processes
Abstract
In this paper, a unified current model for tunnel diodes has been developed. The model incorporates not only the tunneling, diffusion, and excess currents but also the photocurrent generated under illumination. In addition, phonon-assisted tunneling processes, namely phonon absorption and phonon emission, arising from electron–phonon interactions, have been included. The calculated current–voltage characteristics indicate that the total current shifts downward under illumination. It is demonstrated that the photocurrent increases proportionally with the optical intensity and wavelength. In the case of phonon absorption, electrons gain additional energy, the tunneling channel broadens, and the peak current increases by approximately 15–20%. Conversely, during phonon emission, part of the electron energy is lost, reducing the tunneling probability, and the peak current decreases by about 10–12%. The obtained results indicate that accounting for phonon and photon processes significantly extends the application potential of tunnel diodes in optoelectronic and photodetector devices. The proposed model provides a theoretical basis for the development of tunnel diodes as high-frequency, light-sensitive, and energy-efficient devices.
Downloads
References
S.M. Sze, and K.K. Ng, Physics of Semiconductor Devices, (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey, 2007). 3, 418 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/9780470068328.fmatter
E.O. Kane, “Zener tunneling in semiconductors,” Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids 12, 181188 (1960). https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-3697(60)90035-4
I. Shalish, “Franz-Keldysh effect in semiconductor built-in fields: Doping concentration and space charge region characterization,” Journal of applied physics, 124, 075102 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5038800
J.S. Karlovsky, “Simple Method for Calculating the Tunneling Current of an Esaki Diode,” Phys. Rev. 127, 419 (1962). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.127.419
A.G. Chynoweth, W.L. Feldman, and R.A. Logan, “Excess Tunnel Current in Silicon Esaki Junctions,” Phys. Rev. 121, 684 (1961). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.121.684
P.K. Tien, and J.P. Gordon, “Multiphoton Process Observed in the Interaction of Microwave Fields with the Tunneling between Superconductor Films,” Physical Review, 129(2), 647–651 (1963). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.129.647
J.R. Tucker, “Quantum tunneling in electron devices,” IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, 15(11), 1234-1252 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1109/jqe.1979.1069931
G. Gulyamov, and G. N. Majidova, “Influence of electron and phonon heating on the characteristics of solar photocells,” Romanian Journal of Physics, 68(3–4), 607 (2023).
X. Liu, Q. Wang, L. Zhang, et al., “Analytical evaluation of tunneling current density in nonparabolic semiconductors,” Physica Scripta, 100(4), 045503 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1088/1402-4896/adeb06
P. Février, M. Gabelli, et al., “Photon-assisted coherent transport in nanoscale tunnel junctions,” Communications Physics, 6, 92 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-023-01149-5
J.P. Mendez, A. Torres, and D.F. de Lima, “Phonon-coupled tunneling in high-field quantum nanostructures,” arXiv preprint, arXiv:2410.17408, (2025). https://arxiv.org/pdf/2410.17408
T. Sugiura, Y. Morita, et al., “Analysis of tunneling mechanisms in renewable-energy semiconductor devices,” Energy Science & Engineering, 11(10), 3888-3906 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1002/ese3.1523
B.M. Karnakov, and V.P. Krainov, WKB Approximation in Atomic Physics, (Springer, 2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-60065-4
V.A. Mishchenko, et al., “Generalized WKB theory for electron tunneling in gapped α-ℐ3 lattices,” Low Temperature Physics, 51, 588–595 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.103.165429
G. Gulyamov, Sh.B. Utamuradova, M.G. Dadamirzaev, N.A. Turgunov, M.K. Uktamova, K.M. Fayzullaev, A.I. Khudayberdiyeva, et al., “Calculation of the Total Current Generated in a Tunnel Diode Under the Action of Microwave and Magnetic Fields,” East European Journal of Physics, (2), 221-227 (2023). https://doi.org/10.26565/2312-4334-2023-2-24
P.R. Berger, G. Gulyamov, M.G. Dadamirzaev, M.K. Uktamova, and S.R. Boidedaev, Romanian Journal of Physics, 69, 609 (2024). https://doi.org/10.59277/RomJPhys.2024.69.609
A.G. Chynoweth, W.L. Feldman, and R.A. Logan, “Excess Tunnel Current in Silicon Esaki Junctions,” Phys. Rev. 121, 684 (1961). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.121.684
T.A. Growden, M. Evan, D.F. Storm, P.R. Berger et al., 930 kA/cm2 peak tunneling current density in GaN/AlN resonant tunneling diodes grown on MOCVD GaN-on-sapphire template, Appl. Phys. Lett. 114, 203503 (2019).
I. Fistul, and N.Z. Shvarts, Uspekhi Fizicheskikh Nauk, 77, 109–160 (1962).
M.W. Dashiell, J. Kolodzey, P. Crozat, F. Aniel, and J.M. Lourtioz, “Microwave properties of silicon junction tunnel diodes grown by molecular beam epitaxy,” IEEE Electron Device Letters, 23, 357–359 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1109/led.2002.1004234
M. Lotfi, and D. Zohir, “International Journal of Control and Automation, 9(4), 9-50 (2016). http://dx.doi.org/10.14257/ijca.2016.9.4.05
Y. Yan, “Silicon-based tunnel diode technology,” Doctoral Thesis, University of Notre Dame, 2008.
P.R. Berger, in: Comprehensive Semiconductor Science and Technology, (2011), pp. 176-241. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-44-453153 7.00013-4
Y. Turkulets, and I. Shalish, “Franz-Keldysh effect in semiconductor built-in fields: Doping concentration and space charge region characterization,” Journal of Applied Physics, 124(7), 075102 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5038800
Y.Wang, et al. “The influence of the Franz-Keldysh effect on the electron diffusion length in p-type GaN determined using the spectral photocurrent technique,” Journal of Applied Physics, 112(4), 045401 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4746740
C.Wang, et al. “Investigation of Franz–Keldysh effect in GaN-based structures by electroabsorption spectroscopy,” Journal of Applied Physics, 124(3), 035703 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5031854
R. Kudritzki, C. Zimmermann, and D. Feiler, “Illumination-induced modifications of tunneling current in heavily doped semiconductor junctions,” Journal of Applied Physics, 115, 083704 (2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4866852
H.L. Hartnagel, and A. Pavlidis, “Bias-dependent photocurrent generation and tunneling enhancement in pn-junction-based photodetectors,” Semiconductor Science and Technology, 29, 045007 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1088/0268-1242/29/4/045007
Copyright (c) 2025 Mukhammadjon G. Dadamirzaev, Munirakhon K. Uktamova, Shirin Rakhmanova, Gayrat A. Ibadullayev
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
