Lateral-nonuniformity effect on theI-Vspectrum in a double-barrier resonant-tunneling structure

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Abstract
The Schro¨dinger equation is solved self-consistently with the Poisson equation assuming coherent tunneling processes. The lateral-nonuniformity effect on the I-V spectrum is calculated in the double-barrier resonant-tunneling structure. Such an effect is attributed as a possible mechanism to explain the appearance of the fine structures adjacent to the principal tunneling peak in experimental I-V spectra. The lateral nonuniformity also substantially decreases the peak-to-valley ratio. The calculation indicates that this lateral nonuniformity effect can be reduced by increasing the well width, but as the energy width of the resonant state is also decreased, the tunneling current density is decreased. Therefore, the proper design of the device greatly depends on its application.