Monte Carlo particle modelling of small semiconductor devices

A self-consistent Monte Carlo particle model for the simulation of semiconductor devices has been developed which is able to reproduce experimental results, and consists of following the detailed transport histories of individual carriers. Physical processes such as the interaction between the carriers, the lattice and the impurities, electron-hole pair creation and recombination, avalanche effects, and trapping and tunneling, have been included in the model. The method has been generalized for application to any device employing a cubic semiconductor, and is aimed at the description of devices whose geometrical dimensions are of the order of, and smaller than the free flight path of, the carriers. The model may be used as a physical study tool, and as a framework for design and evaluation of novel device concepts. Simulations conducted to date are described and assessed.