Minority electron transport in InP/InGaAs heterojunction bipolar transistors

Electron transport across the base of InP/InGaAs heterojunction bipolar transistors is examined by Monte Carlo simulation. The base transit times and electron distribution functions are examined as a function of basewidth. Clear ballistic behavior is observed only for extremely thin bases (much less than 100 Å). Over the range of basewidths of interest for devices, base transport appears diffusive, but the electrons are very far from thermal equilibrium. The diffusive behavior is shown to arise from the sensitivity of the steady-state carrier population to small amounts of large-angle scattering.