Computational Modelling of the Photo-Field Effect

The photoresponse of a thin film transistor depends on the mode of operation the transistor is in, in an effect known as the photo-field effect. The extent of this effect then depends on the properties of material composing the transistor. This intensity and state dependent photoresponse is explored in amorphous silicon (a-Si) thin film transistors (TFTs) with computational modelling. Results of the numerical simulation agree with observed experimental results. Possible sources of the effect are analyzed and related to parameters in the model. The results from a-Si TFTs are then related to experimental results of TFTs consisting of a-Si embedded with nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si) quantum dots (the composite material denoted as a/nc-Si), and future work involving a more explicit relationship between the parameters in the model and the properties of a/nc-Si is discussed.