Avalanche-Induced Current Enhancement in Semiconducting Carbon Nanotubes

Albert Liao, Yang Zhao, and Eric Pop
Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 256804 – Published 16 December 2008

Abstract

Semiconducting single-wall carbon nanotubes under high electric field stress (10V/μm) display a remarkable current increase due to avalanche generation of free electrons and holes. Unlike other materials, the avalanche process in such 1D quantum wires involves access to the third subband and is insensitive to temperature but strongly dependent on diameter exp(1/d2). Comparison with a theoretical model yields a novel approach to obtain the inelastic optical phonon emission length λOP,ems15dnm. The new results underscore the importance of multiband transport in 1D molecular wires.

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  • Received 8 August 2008

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.256804

©2008 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Albert Liao1, Yang Zhao1, and Eric Pop1,2,*

  • 1Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Micro and Nanotechnology Laboratory, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Illinois 61801, USA
  • 2Beckman Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Illinois 61801, USA

  • *epop@illinois.edu

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Issue

Vol. 101, Iss. 25 — 19 December 2008

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