Electro-Thermal Limitations and Device Degradation of SiGe HBTs with Emphasis on Circuit Performance

Abstract

This paper examines the performance of SiGe HBTs under DC and AC pulsed operating conditions beyond the breakdown voltage. Two state-of-the-art technologies are investigated. The limitations when biasing the transistor at or beyond peak fT are thermal only, thus penalizing deep trench architectures. Furthermore, the reliability implications are explored and their impact on device degradation is assessed.