High-frequency metal-insulator-metal (MIM) diodes for thermal radiation harvesting

The fabrication of low-cost metal-insulator-metal (MIM) diodes using a self-assembled monolayer as the insulating layer is presented. DC and AC analysis show that the diodes have excellent non-linear current voltage characteristics compared to those typically reported, with a zero-bias curvature coefficient ranging from 0.5 V^-1 to 5.4 V^-1, voltage responsivity of 1.9 kV/W at a frequency of 1 GHz. The process developed for fabricating these diodes is simple, cost effective, and can potentially be used in the roll-to-roll manufacturing of MIM diodes. Reliability tests performed on the fabricated OTS diodes shows that the OTS layer of the diodes remains unaffected by high temperature up to approximately 450 °C which is significant in thermal energy harvesting applications, where the diode may be exposed to high temperatures.