ION Degradation in Si Devices in Harsh Radiation Environments: Modeling of Damage-Dopant Interactions

Abstract

Electronic devices operating in harsh radiation environments must withstand high radiation levels with minimal performance degradation. Recent experiments on the radiation hardness of a new vertical p-type JFET power switch have shown a significant reduction of forward drain current under non-ionizing conditions. In this work, atomistic simulations are used to study the impact of irradiation-induced displacement damage on forward characteristics. Damage models have been updated to produce a better description of damage-dopant interactions at RT. Our results show that excess self-interstitials produced by irradiation deactivate a significant amount of B atoms, thus reducing the effective dopant concentration.