High frequency III-V nanowire MOSFETs

III-V nanowire transistors are promising candidates for very high frequency electronics applications. The improved electrostatics originating from the gate-all-around geometry allow for more aggressive scaling as compared with planar field-effect transistors, and this can lead to device operation at very high frequencies. The very high mobility possible with In-rich devices can allow very high device performance at low operating voltages. GaN nanowires can take advantage of the large band gap for high voltage operation. In this paper, we review the basic physics and device performance of nanowire field-effect transistors relevant for high frequency performance. First, the geometry of lateral and vertical nanowire field-effect transistors is introduced, with special emphasis on the parasitic capacitances important for nanowire geometries. The basic important high frequency transistor metrics are introduced. Secondly, the scaling properties of gate-all-around nanowire transistors are introduced, based on geometric length scales, demonstrating the scaling possibilities of nanowire transistors. Thirdly, to model nanowire transistor performance, a two-band non-parabolic ballistic transistor model is used to efficiently calculate the current and transconductance as a function of band gap and nanowire size. The intrinsic RF metrics are also estimated. Finally, experimental state-of-the-art nanowire field-effect transistors are reviewed and benchmarked, lateral and vertical transistor geometries are explored, and different fabrication routes are highlighted. Lateral devices have demonstrated operation up to 350 GHz, and vertical devices up to 155 GHz.