UNIT – II (PART 2)

METAL OXIDE FIELD EFFECT TRANSISTOR (MOSFET)

INTRODUCTION
Having studied the junction diode, which is the most basic two-terminal semiconductor
device, we now turn our attention to three-terminal semiconductor devices. Three-terminal devices
are far more useful than two-terminal ones because they can be used in a multitude of applications,
ranging from signal amplification to digital logic and memory. The basic principle involved is the
use of the voltage between two terminals to control the current flowing in the third terminal. In
this way a three-terminal device can be used to realize a controlled source. Also, in the extreme,
the control signal can be used to cause the current in the third terminal to change from zero to a
large value, thus allowing the device to act as a switch, basis for the realization of the logic inverter,
the basic element of digital circuits.
There are two major types of three-terminal semiconductor devices: the metal-oxide
semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) and the bipolar junction transistor (BJT).
Although each of the two transistor types offers unique features and areas of application, the
MOSFET has become by far the most widely used electronic device, especially in the design of
integrated circuits (ICs), which are entire circuits fabricated on a single silicon chip.
Compared to BJTs, MOSFETs can be made quite small (i.e., requiring a small area on the silicon
IC chip), and their manufacturing process is relatively simple. Also, their operation requires
comparatively little power. Furthermore, circuit designers have found ingenious ways to
implement digital and analog functions utilizing MOSFETs almost exclusively (i.e., with very few
or no resistors). All of these properties have made it possible to pack large numbers of MOSFETs
(as many as 2 billion!) on a single IC chip to implement very sophisticated, very-large-scale-
integrated (VLSI) digital circuits such as those for memory and microprocessors. Analog circuits
such as amplifiers and filters can also be implemented in MOS technology, albeit in smaller, less-
dense chips. Also, both analog and digital functions are increasingly being implemented on the
same IC chip, in what is known as mixed-signal design.
CLASSIFICATION OF TRANSISTOR

Bipolar Junction Transistor: The BJT transistors have three terminals named emitter (E), Base
(B), Collector (C). The name itself indicates that it has two junctions between p-type and n-type
semiconductors. The BJT transistors are classified in to NPN and PNP transistors depending on
the construction.
Unlike FET transistors, the BJT transistors are current-controlled devices. If small amount
of current flows through the base of a BJT transistor then it causes to flow large current from
emitter to collector. The BJT transistors have low input impedance and it causes to flow large
current through the transistor.

NPN: NPN is one of the two types of Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT). The NPN transistor
consists of two n-type semiconductor materials and they are separated by a thin layer of p-type
semiconductor. Here the majority charge carriers are electrons and holes are the minority charge
carriers. The flowing of electrons from emitter to collector forms the current flow in the transistor
through the base terminal.
A small amount of current at base terminal causes to flow large amount current from
emitter to collector. Nowadays the generally used bipolar transistor is NPN transistor, because the
mobility of electrons is greater than mobility of holes.
 Fig. NPN Transistor Structure and Symbol

PNP : The PNP is another type of Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT). The PNP transistors contain
two p-type semiconductor materials and are separated by a thin layer of n-type semiconductor. The
majority charge carriers in the PNP transistors are holes and electrons are minority charge carriers.
The arrow in the emitter terminal of transistor indicates the flow of conventional current. In PNP
transistor the current flows from Emitter to Collector.

Fig. PNP Transistor Structure and Symbol

Field Effect Transistor: The Field-Effect-Transistor (FET) is another transistors type. Basically
the FET transistors have three terminals they are gate (G), Drain (D) and Source (S). FET
transistors are classified into Junction Field Effect transistors (JFET) and Insulated Gate FET (IG-
FET) or MOSFET transistors. For the connections in the circuit we also consider fourth terminal
called base or substrate. The FET transistors have control on the size and shape of a channel
between source and drain which is created by applied voltage. The FET transistors are unipolar
transistors because they perform single channel operation whereas BJT transistors are bipolar
junction transistors. The FET transistors have high current gain than BJT transistors.

Junction Field Effect Transistor (JFET): The Junction-Field-Effect transistor (JFET) is an

earliest and simple type of FET transistors. These JFETs are used as switches, amplifiers and
resistors. This transistor is a voltage controlled device. It doesn’t need any biasing current. The
voltage applied between gate and source controls the flow of electric current between source and
drain of a transistor. The JFET transistors are available in both N-channel and P-channel types.

Fig. N-Channel JFET Fig. P- Channel JFET

MOSFET: Like Junction Field Effect Transistor (JFET), there is another type of Field Effect
Transistor available whose Gate input is electrically insulated from the main current carrying
channel and is therefore called an Insulated Gate Field Effect Transistor. The most common
type of insulated gate FET which is used in many different types of electronic circuits is called
the Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor or MOSFET for short. The name itself
indicates that it contains metal gate terminal It has four terminals drain, source, gate and body or
substrate (B).

The IGFET or MOSFET is a voltage controlled field effect transistor that differs from a JFET in
that it has a “Metal Oxide” Gate electrode which is electrically insulated from the main
semiconductor n-channel or p-channel by a very thin layer of insulating material usually silicon
dioxide, commonly known as glass.

This ultra-thin insulated metal gate electrode can be thought of as one plate of a capacitor. The
isolation of the controlling Gate makes the input resistance of the MOSFET extremely high way
up in the Mega-ohms (MΩ) region thereby making it almost infinite.

As the Gate terminal is electrically isolated from the main current carrying channel between the
drain and source, “no current flows into the gate” and just like the JFET, the MOSFET also acts
like a voltage controlled resistor where the current flowing through the main channel between the
Drain and Source is proportional to the input voltage. Also like the JFET, the MOSFETs very high
input resistance can easily accumulate large amounts of static charge resulting in
the MOSFET becoming easily damaged unless carefully handled or protected.

The MOSFET transistors are available in depletion and enhancement types. Further the depletion
and enhancement types are classified into N-channel and P-channel types.

N-Channel MOSFET: The MOSFET having N-channel region between source and drain is called
N-channel MOSFET. Here the source and gate terminals are heavily doped with n-type materials
and substrate is doped with p-type semiconductor material. Here the current flow between source
and drain is because of electrons. The gate voltage controls the current flow in the circuit. N-
channel MOSFET is most preferable than P-channel MOSFET because the mobility of electrons
is high than mobility of holes.

Fig. Symbols of N- Channel MOSFET

P-Channel MOSFET: The MOSFET having P-channel region between source and drain is called
as P-channel MOSFET. Here the source and drain terminals are heavily doped with P-type material
and the substrate is doped with N-type material. The current flow between source and drain is
because of holes concentration. The applied voltage at gate will controls the flow of current
through channel region.

Fig. Symbols of P-Channel MOSFET

DEVICE STRUCTURE
The physical structure of the n-channel enhancement-type MOSFET is shown in fig below. The
transistor is fabricated on a p-type substrate, which is a single-crystal silicon wafer that provides
physical support for the device (and for the entire circuit in the case of an integrated circuit). Two
heavily doped n-type regions, indicated in the figure as the n+ source and the n+ drain regions,
are created in the substrate. A thin layer of silicon dioxide (SiO2) of thickness tox (typically 1 to
10 nm)2 , which is an excellent electrical insulator, is grown on the surface of the substrate,
covering the area between the source and drain regions. Metal is deposited on top of the oxide
layer to form the gate electrode of the device. Metal contacts are also made to the source region,
the drain region, and the substrate, also known as the body. Thus four terminals are brought: the
gate (G), the source terminal (S), the drain terminal (D) and the substrate or the body terminal (B).
 Fig. Physical structure of the enhancement-type NMOS transistor
(a) Perspective view (b) Cross- section view

At this point it should be clear that the name of the device (metal-oxide-semiconductor FET) is
derived from its physical structure. The name, however, has become a general one and is used also
for FETs that do not use metal for the gate electrode. In fact, most modern MOSFETs are fabricated
using a process known as silicon-gate technology, in which a certain type of silicon, called
polysilicon, is used to form the gate electrode.Our description of MOSFET operation and
characteristics applies irrespective of the type of gate electrode.
Another name for the MOSFET is the insulated-gate FET or IGFET. This name also arises from
the physical structure of the device, emphasizing the fact that the gate electrode is electrically
insulated from the device body (by the oxide layer). It is this insulation that causes the current in
the gate terminal to be extremely small (of the order of 10 −15 A).