Real Space Transfer Devices

Invention and experimental demonstration of opto-electronic heterostructure devices based on the real-space transfer of hot electrons (1983-96).

over the years of work on this topic, I was fortunate to have many excellent collaborations, including (alphabetically)

Garik Belenky, Al Cho, Art Gossard, Alex Kastalsky, Marco Mastrapasqua, Piotr Mensz, Mark Pinto, and many others.

These devices are known as the charge injection transistor or CHINT. The transistor action results from controlling the effective temperature of a hot-electron ``cathode'' by a lateral electric field. Microwave performance of the CHINT has been demonstrated in a variety of material systems (fT over 100 GHz in InGaAs/InP). The device also works as a negative differential resistance (NDR) element, controlled by a third electrode. The efficient injection and unique symmetry properties of the CHINT allow the implementation of novel functional circuits and optoelectronic elements. We have demonstrated a multi-terminal complementary device, whose output current and optical power exhibit both OR and NAND functions of input voltages. Experimental research on the CHINT is pursued by at least ten laboratories around the world. The device has been also the subject of numerous theoretical studies. Our own modeling work on the CHINT has led to the prediction of multiply-connected intrinsic current-voltage characteristics of the device. This striking effect, based on the symmetry of the real-space transfer, elucidates the formation of hot-electron domains and explains the observed high peak-to-valley ratio in the NDR of real-space transfer transistors. See relatively recent reviews [ paper # 113 ]

Most recent publication on the topic: "Real space transfer devices in SOI", Proceedings of the Electrochemical Society (2003) 

Key original papers: 21, 25, 33, 56, 81, 83, 91, 93, 111, 124 (where the numbers refer to the attached list of Publications )

US Pat. 4,903,092 (Real Space Electron Transfer Device Using Hot Electron Injection)

US Pat. 4,999,687 (Logic Element and Article Comprising the Element)

US Pat. 5,146,078 (Articles and Systems Comprising Optically Communicating Logic Elements Including an Electro-Optical Logic Element)

US Pat. 5,223,723 (Light Emitting Device)

US Pat. 5,309,003 (Article Comprising a Real-Space Transfer Semiconductor Device and Method of Making the Article)


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Serge Luryi, Serge.Luryi@sunysb.edu, +1.631.632.8420; Fax: +1.631.632.8494