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arXiv · 1011.3008

Piezoresistance in silicon at uniaxial compressive stresses up to 3 GPa

J. S. Milne·I. Favorskiy·A. C. H. Rowe·S. Arscott·Ch. Renner
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Abstract

The room-temperature longitudinal piezoresistance of n-type and p-type crystalline silicon along selected crystal axes is investigated under uniaxial compressive stresses up to 3 GPa. While the conductance ($G$) of n-type silicon eventually saturates at $\approx 45%$ of its zero-stress value ($G_0$) in accordance with the charge transfer model, in p-type material $G/G_0$ increases above a predicted limit of $\approx 4.5$ without any significant saturation, even at 3 GPa. Calculation of $G/G_0$ using \textit{ab-initio} density functional theory reveals that neither $G$ nor the mobility, when properly averaged over the hole distribution, saturate at stresses lower than 3 GPa. The lack of saturation has important consequences for strained silicon technologies.

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J. S. Milne, I. Favorskiy, A. C. H. Rowe, S. Arscott, Ch. Renner. 2012-09-25. Piezoresistance in silicon at uniaxial compressive stresses up to 3 GPa. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.108.256801

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