Effect of Uniaxial Stress on Germanium p-n Junctions

Abstract

The stress effect on germanium Esaki- and ordinary diodes has been investigated when the stress is applied perpendicularly to the junction which is parallel to the (111) plane. No essential difference in the stress effect has been found between Esaki- and ordinary diodes so far as the ordinary diode current region is concerned. Stress-induced increase in forward current with constant slope of ln I vs V plots is interpreted in terms of changes in both mobility and intrinsic carrier concentration due to piezo-effect of germanium bulk. A large increase in forward current with stress accompanied by the decrease in the apparent slope of ln I vs V plots is attributed to the stress-induced recombination-generation current due to large local stress at the junction. A decrease in reverse current with uniaxial stress observed in heavily doped specimens is explained by the decrease in number of [111] light mass tunneling carriers due to piezo-effect.