A two-dimensional dislocation network artificially embedded in a Si-on-insulator layer was examined as the source of lattice strain to generate a periodic potential. A screw dislocation network with the period of 20nm was formed in a Si-on-insulator layer using a twist bonding of two Si-on-insulator wafers. n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors using the dislocation-embedded Si-on-insulator layer showed an oscillation of drain current with the gate voltage at below 40K. This oscillation was ascribed to the single-electron tunnelling through the spatially modulated potential. The results suggested that the dislocation network works as the strain source to form the potential array.

Single-Electron Tunneling in a Silicon-on-Insulator Layer Embedding an Artificial Dislocation Network. Y.Ishikawa, C.Yamamoto, M.Tabe: Applied Physics Letters, 2006, 88[7], 073112 (3pp)