Nonlinear four‐terminal microstructures: A hot‐spot transistor?

Abstract

Four-terminal microcontacts between metallic electrodes develop nonlinear current-voltage dependencies both in the source and control channels as well as between the channels. Theory is presented of the nonlinearity caused by the reabsorption of nonequilibrium phonons emitted in the contact by injected electrons. Temperature of the lattice due to heating by the current is of the order T approximately eV/4, which results in substantial increase of the resistance both in the bias direction and in the direction perpendicular to the bias. Performance characteristics of such a device at low temperature compared to the Debye temperature are quite promising for frequencies below 10(9) Hz.