Gate-Controlled P-I-N Junction Switching Device with Graphene Nanoribbon

A graphene P-I-N junction switching device with a nanoribbon is proposed, which was aimed at finding an optimized operation scheme for graphene transistors. The device has two bulk graphene regions where the carrier type is electrostatically controlled by a top gate, and these two regions are separated by a nanoribbon that works as an insulator, resulting in a junction configuration of (P or N)-I-(P or N). It is demonstrated that the drain current modulation strongly depends on the junction configuration, while the nanoribbon is not directly top-gated, and that the device with a P-I-N or N-I-P junction can exhibit better switching properties. (C) 2012 The Japan Society of Applied Physics