Pulsed I-V and small signal characterisation and modelling of resonant tunneling diodes

This paper describes the use of dc pulses for current voltage (I-V) characterisation of resonant tunnelling diodes (RTDs). The results show that accurate (parasitic) oscillation-free measurements of the negative differential resistance (NDR) region can be done. The proposed technique allows for the monitoring of possible onset of parasitic oscillations during measurements, and so allows for specific measurement windows (when the device is stable) to be identified and so enable accurate measurements. Pulsed I-V experimental results of resonant tunnelling diodes are presented along with modelled I-V curves. In addition, the extraction of a small-signal equivalent circuit model for the RTD from the measured S-parameters (S11) is described.