Silicon Wafers with Facet-Dependent Electrical Conductivity Properties

By breaking intrinsic Si (100) and (111) wafers to expose sharp {111} and {112} facets, electrical conductivity measurements on single and different silicon crystal faces were performed through contacts with two tungsten probes. While Si {100} and {110} faces are barely conductive at low applied voltages, as expected, the Si {112} surface is highly conductive and Si {111} surface also shows good conductivity. Asymmetrical I-V curves have been recorded for the {111}/{112}, {111}/{110}, and {112}/{110} facet combinations because of different degrees of conduction band bending at these crystal surfaces presenting different barrier heights to current flow. In particular, the {111}/{110} and {112}/{110} facet combinations give I-V curves resembling those of p-n junctions, suggesting a novel field effect transistor design is possible capitalizing on the pronounced facet-dependent electrical conductivity properties of silicon.