Silicon on insulator thermodiode with extremely wide working temperature range

This paper presents for the first time the performance of a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) p⁺-n⁺ thermodiode, which can operate in an extremely wide temperature range of -200 °C to 700 °C while maintaining its linearity. The thermodiode is embedded in a thin dielectric membrane underneath a tungsten microheater, which allows the diode characterization at very high temperature (> 800 °C). The effect of the junction area (Aj) on the thermodiode linearity, sensitivity and self-heating is experimentally and theoretically investigated. Results on the long-term diode stability at high temperature are also reported.