Simulation-Based Study of Si/Si 0.9 Ge 0.1 /Si Hetero-Channel FinFET for Enhanced Performance in Low-Power Applications

The performance of a p-channel FinFET comprising a heterogeneous silicon (Si) and silicon-germanium (Si 0.9 Ge 0.1 ) channel region is evaluated using three-dimensional TCAD simulations and benchmarked against a conventional p-channel Si FinFET. The results show that the hetero-channel design provides for larger ON-state current while maintaining comparable electrostatic integrity as the conventional design due to the valence band offset between Si 0.9 Ge 0.1 and Si. The enhanced performance is achieved with a relatively low Ge mole fraction (10%) in the channel region for ease of manufacture. Therefore, the hetero-channel FinFET is promising for future low-power applications.