Microwave On-Wafer Characterization and Modelling of Schottky Barrier Diodes

A simple method is described to determine the equivalent circuit of the forward- and reverse-biased Schottky diode. The parameters of the circuit can be extracted from S-matrix measurements carried out in a relatively wide frequency range (90-18090 MHz) with the use of the Cascade probe station and the HP8510 network analyser. In particular, the bias dependence of the series resistance of the semiconductor region under the Schottky junction can be determined. The additional advantage of this technique is the ability to derive from the measurements, the values of the junction capacitance even for forward-bias conditions which exclude the use of the conventional C-V characterization technique.