Energy-Efficient Metal-Insulator-Metal-Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors Based on 2D Carrier Gases

2D electron and hole gases (2DEG or 2DHG) based on semiconductor surface/interface or 2D materials are promising for next-generation integrated circuits and high-frequency and -power electronics. To reduce power consumption, normally off operation and low-switching-loss metal-oxide field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) based on 2DEG or 2DHG are highly in demand. The present methods to achieve normally off MOSFETs have various shortcomings such as reduction in carrier mobility, sacrifice of drain current, high uncertainty in threshold voltage, and poor reliability. Here a universal device concept called a metal-insulator-metal-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MIMS-FET) to achieve normally off operation is shown by combining the advantages of MOSFETs and metal-semiconductor FETs. High-performance MIMS-FETs based on 2DHG of diamond with a low subthreshold swing of approximate to 76 mV dec(-1), on-off current ratio exceeding 10(9), and high thermal stability up to 623 K are realized. The current work provides a strategy to develop next-generation energy-efficient electronic circuits as well as fail-safety power devices. The proposed concept also adds diversity to the semiconductor devices family.