ABSTRACT
The key elements in the steady miniaturization process of cutting-edge semiconductor devices are the understanding and controlling of charge dynamics on the atomic scale. In detail, we address the study of charging processes of individual doping atoms and, especially, the interaction of those atoms with their surroundings. We use pulsed optical excitation in combination with scanning tunneling microscopy at the n-doped gallium arsenide [GaAs(110)] surface to investigate single donor dynamics within a nanoscaled, localized space charge region. Tuning the tunnel rate can drive the system into nonequilibrium conditions, allowing distinction between the decay of optically induced free charge carriers and the decay of donor charge states. The latter process is atomically resolved and discussed with respect to donor-level binding energies and local donor configurations.
ABSTRACT
The miniaturization of future electronic devices is intimately connected to the ability to control electric fields on the atomic scale. In a nanoscopic system defined by a limited number of charges, the combined dynamics of bound and free charges become important. Here we present a model system based on the electrostatic interaction between a metallic tip of a scanning tunnelling microscope and a GaAs(110) semiconductor surface. The system is driven out of equilibrium by optical excitation, which provides ambipolar free charge carriers, and by an optically induced unipolar tunnel current. This combination enables the active control of the density and spatial distribution of free and bound charge in the space-charge region, that is, modifying the screening processes. Temporal fluctuations of single dopants are modified, meaning we are able to control the noise of the system. It is found that free charge carriers suppress the noise level in field-controlled, nanoscopic systems.
