Particle-based methods in computational electronics

As the density of integrated circuits increases, pressure to reduce the dimensions of the individual components also increases. Smaller circuit dimensions reduce the overall die area. However, as semiconductor feature sizes enter the nanometer-scale realm, the modeling of device behavior becomes increasingly complicated. The goal of computational electronics is to provide simulation tools that capture the essential physics issues while minimizing the computational burden. We give a brief overview of particle-based simulation techniques used in semiconductor device simulation. We begin with a discussion of the Monte Carlo method for the solution of the Boltzmann transport equation (BTE), including full-band effects. Some key elements of particle based simulation, such as the proper choice of mesh size and time step, as well as particle-mesh coupling and calculation of the current, are discussed. Typical particle based simulation results for the potential and current-voltage characteristics of a 23 nm MOSFET device follow.