Monte Carlo modelling of Schottky diode for rectenna simulation

摘要

Before designing a detector circuit, the electrical parameters extraction of the Schottky diode is a critical step. This article is based on a Monte-Carlo (MC) solver of the Boltzmann Transport Equation (BTE) including different transport mechanisms at the metal-semiconductor contact such as image force effect or tunneling. The weight of tunneling and thermionic current is quantified according to different degrees of tunneling modelling. The I-V characteristic highlights the dependence of the ideality factor and the current saturation with bias. Harmonic Balance (HB) simulation on a rectifier circuit within Advanced Design System (ADS) software shows that considering non-linear ideality factor and saturation current for the electrical model of the Schottky diode does not seem essential. Indeed, bias independent values extracted in forward regime on I-V curve are sufficient. However, the non-linear series resistance extracted from a small signal analysis (SSA) strongly influences the conversion efficiency at low input powers. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.