Technology Computer-Aided Design: A Key Component of Microelectronics' Development

Abstract

Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD) is an important enabler of microelectronics' development. We briefly review the evolution of key TCAD transport descriptions beginning with the classical drift-diffusion transport model. As complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) downscaling continued, more involved transport models based on higher moments of the distribution function had to be introduced. Developing comprehensive mobility models allowed extending the applicability of classical transport models for devices in the deep submicron regime. However, even more rigorous models based on quantum mechanical transport combined with atomistic ab-initio electronic calculations are required for the proper transport description of devices with nanometer dimensions. Based on a particular example of MINIMOS, we show the evolution of the transport models employed by TCAD with device downscaling.