Ballistic nanodevices for high frequency applications

We report on the study of devices exploiting ballistic transport at room temperature by means of simulations and experimental results. Ballistic effects have been demonstrated at room temperature since a few years. This paper presents the work realised since 2001 on ballistic nanodevices at the Institut d'Electronique, Microelectronique et Nanotechnologie (IEMN). We will present the fabrication process and the characterisation of ballistic devices. We work on InGaAs-based devices optimised for ballistic transport, where the electron mean free path can reach around 130-160 nm at room temperature in channels with high indium content. We show that nanostructures around this size can be fabricated with the help of modem lithography techniques and are compatible with InP-HEMT technology. Devices under scope are Three-terminal Ballistic Junctions (TBJ) and their typical application is rectification. We have also characterised ballistic rectifiers up to 94 GHz. Measurements were realised on two TBJs integrated in parallel in a coplanar waveguide. We also show the frequency doubling characteristic of a single TBJ at 600 MHz.