Characterizations of mesa structural near-infrared n-type nanocrystalline-FeSi₂/p-type si heterojunction photodiodes at low temperatures

In order to reduce the parasitic capacitance, mesa structural n-type NC-FeSi₂/p-type Si heterojunctions were fabricated by photolithography. Their current-voltage characteristics were measured in the dark and under illumination using a 1.31 μm laser in the temperature range of 60 - 300 K. Their junction capacitance density was evidently reduced as compared with that of the normal structural diodes. The dark current was markedly reduced with a decrease in the temperature. At 60 K, a rectifying current ratio in the dark became more than five orders of magnitude at ±1V. The ratio of the photocurrent to the dark current was dramatically enhanced to be approximately two orders of magnitude, and the detectivity was calculated to be 1.5 × 10¹¹ cmHz^1/2/W at -1V. The obtained results showed a remarkable improvement in the device performance as compared with those at 300 K.