Tunneling Current Due to Thermionic-Field Emission in an Au–InS Schottky-Barrier Diode

The voltage-current characteristics of Au–InS Schottky-barrier diodes have been systematically measured over a wide temperature range from -193 to 57°C, showing anomalously large excess current components. These data have been analysed with the current transport mechanism, due to thermionic-field emission, which may be able to explain departures from the simple transport theory in the V-I characteristics observed for highly doped semiconductors. As a result, we may conclude that there exists evidence for the existence of the tunneling current components due to thermionic-field emission, this current being the origin of the large excess current components observed in the V-I characteristics of the Au–InS Schottky-barrier diodes.