CAREER: Understanding and Modeling of Cryogenic Semiconductor Device Physics down to 4.2K

低温半导体器件和低温互补金属氧化物半导体(Cryo-Cmos)在4.2K以下的温度下工作，对某些新兴技术的成功至关重要。例如，低温cmos是量子计算机(QC)和深空探测的合适的候选外围电路。然而，低温CMOS器件物理的关键元素仍然不清楚，它们的设计仍然主要基于解析式。此外，低温电子学教育并不特别出现在大多数电气工程专业中。因此，该项目的目标是填补低温CMOS器件物理方面的关键知识空白，开发新的、高效和有效的模型，以促进低温CMOS技术的创新计算机辅助设计(TCAD)几十年来一直是CMOS发展的动力，并培养多样化的低温电子劳动力。成功的实施将加强圣何塞州立大学的低温实验，圣何塞州立大学是加州州立大学(CSU)系统中为少数族裔(URM)服务的机构，并将培训学生进行最先进的低温测量和模拟。由URM本科生组成的不同研究团队将进行测量、TCAD模拟和代码开发。在硅谷工程女性大会(WIE)上，将设立一个新的低温工艺和质量控制会议。学生们将在电子设备协会的研讨会上向硅谷的工程师们共同展示这一发现。将向当地社会和经济困难的高中生推出介绍低温CMOS和QC的免费暑期课程，并建立量子计算未来学生的渠道，以创造多样化的劳动力，并成为弱势社区的经济驱动力。新课程和外展课程的评估结果将会公布，与教育界分享。为达致目标，创新测试结构的65纳米测试晶片将尺寸降至4.2k。TCAD和从头算模拟将被用来验证各种低温理论。将开发一种新的自动编码器框架，用于自动校准。已知制造条件的附加芯片将用于验证和改进研究结果。这项工作将解决该领域长期存在的争议，即异常亚阈值摆动(SS)的起源，从而在低温CMOS器件物理方面取得重要突破并产生新的知识。将开发一套准确、完整和实用的TCAD模型，以促进用于量子计算机等新兴技术的低温CMOS的开发和优化。反常SS起源的发现将导致界面和能带结构工程的新研究，可能会开辟一个全新的研究领域。建立迁移率和场相关电离的精确而稳健的模拟模型，将有助于新型低温电子器件的发展。建议的全套模型和强大的设置将使TCAD能够加速开发用于高性能和可靠的低温集成电路设计的自动化工具。该项目的成功将为最终实现量子计算机和COMS的协同集成而进行低于4.2k的低温CMOS建模铺平道路。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Cryogenic semiconductor devices and Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductors (cryo-CMOS) that operate at temperatures down to 4.2K are crucial to the success of certain emerging technologies. For example, cryo-CMOS are suitable peripheral circuits candidates for quantum computers (QC) as well as for deep space exploration. However, critical elements of cryo-CMOS device physics remain unclear and their design is still mostly based on analytical equations. Moreover, cryogenic electronics education is not particularly present in most Electrical Engineering programs. The objectives of this project are, therefore, to close the critical knowledge gaps in cryo-CMOS device physics, develop new, efficient and effective models to facilitate cryo-CMOS innovation in Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD) that has been the powerhouse of CMOS development for decades, and to educate a diverse cryogenic electronics workforce. Successful implementation will enhance cryogenic experiments at San Jose State University, an underrepresented minority (URM)-serving institution in the California State University (CSU) system and will train students in state-of-the-art cryogenic measurements and simulations. A diverse research team of URM undergraduate students will perform the measurement, TCAD simulations, and code development. A new cryo-CMOS and QC session will be created in the Silicon Valley Women in Engineering (WiE) Conference. Students will co-present the findings at the seminar of the Electron Device Society to the engineers in Silicon Valley. A free summer course to introduce cryo-CMOS and QC will be introduced to socially and economically disadvantaged high school students in the local area, and build a pipeline of future students in quantum computing to create a diverse workforce and become an economic driver for vulnerable communities. The new classes and outreach course evaluation results will be published to share with education communities.To achieve the goals, 65nm test chips with innovative test structures will be measured down to 4.2K. TCAD and ab initio simulations will be used to verify various cryogenic theories. A new autoencoder framework will be developed for automatic calibration. Additional chip with known fabrication conditions will be used to verify and improve the research results. This work will settle a long-standing controversy in the field, namely the origin of abnormal subthreshold swing (SS), resulting in important breakthroughs and generating new knowledge in cryo-CMOS device physics. An accurate, complete, and practical set of TCAD models will be developed to facilitate the development and optimization of cryo-CMOS for emerging technologies such as quantum computers. The finding of the origin of abnormal SS will lead to new research in interface and band structure engineering, potentially opening up an entirely new research field. Accurate and robust simulation models for mobility and field-dependent ionization will be derived which will facilitate the development of novel cryogenic electronic devices. The proposed complete set of models and robust settings will enable TCAD to accelerate the development of automation tools for high performance and reliable cryogenic integrated circuit designs. The success of this project will pave the path to sub-4.2K modeling of cryo-CMOS for the ultimate co-integration of quantum computers and CMOS.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.