Carbon Nanotube Field-effect Transistors: AC Performance Capabilities

The AC performance capabilities of Schottky-barrier carbon nanotube field-effect transistors are examined via simulations using a self-consistent Schrödinger-Poisson solver. It is shown that good high-frequency performance demands use of a small-bandgap nanotube, whereas good digitalswitching performance can be achieved with larger-bandgap tubes. For typical transistor geometries it is shown that the inter-electrode capacitance makes a large contribution to the total capacitance, and must be reduced if exceptional AC performance is to be attained.