Electron transport and noise in Schottky diodes with electron traps in the active layer

We present a microscopic analysis of current fluctuations in a GaAs n⁺-n-metal Schottky barrier diode containing electron traps in the active layer. An ensemble Monte Carlo simulation is used for the calculations. We analyze the influence of generation-recombination mechanisms of electrons with traps on the current-voltage characteristics and noise spectra of the diode. The presence of traps reduces both the flat-band voltage and the current level in the series-resistance regime. With respect to the noise, significant modifications are observed in the current noise spectra. In the barrier-limited regime, while at low frequency shot noise is not found to change, the returning-carriers peak is strongly modulated by the influence of the traps. Beyond flat-band conditions generation-recombination noise becomes evident at low frequency, exhibiting a quadratic dependence on the current.