Implementation of a quantum corrections in a 3D parallel drift-diffusion simulator

Abstract

We describe an implementation of density-gradient quantum corrections in a 3D drift-diffusion (D-D) semiconductor simulator based on finite element method. Mesh efficiency of the 3D semiconductor device simulator with quantum mechanical corrections is achieved by parallelisation of the code for a memory distributed multiprocessor environment. The Poisson equation, the current continuity equation, and the density gradient equation with an appropriate finite element discretisation have to be solved iteratively. Moreover, parallel algorithms are employed to speed up the self-consistent solution. In order to test our 3D semiconductor device simulator, we have carried out a careful calibration against experimental I-V characteristics of a 67 nm Si MOSFET achieving an excellent agreement. Then we demonstrate a relative impact of quantum mechanical corrections in this device.