III-V-on-nothing metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors enabled by top-down nanowire release process: Experiment and simulation

III-V-on-nothing (III-VON) metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) are experimentally demonstrated with In0.53Ga0.47As as channel and atomic layer deposited Al2O3 as gate dielectric. A hydrochloric acid based release process has been developed to create an air gap beneath the InGaAs channel layer, forming the nanowire channel with width down to 40 nm. III-VON MOSFETs with channel lengths down to 50 nm are fabricated and show promising improvement in drain-induced barrier lowering, due to suppressed short-channel effects. The top-down processing technique provides a viable pathway towards fully gate-all-around III-V MOSFETs.