Quantifying and Overcoming Defect Limitations in High‐Mobility Amorphous p‐Type Tellurium Oxide Transistors
Xiaomin Yang, Jaeyun Lee, Zhikai Le, Mengfei He, Huihui Zhu, Mingyang Wang, Mingsheng Xu, Yong‐Young Noh, Ao Liu
Abstract
Abstract Tellurium (Te)‐based oxide has recently emerged as a promising p‐type oxide semiconductor for thin‐film transistors (TFTs), offering high hole mobility, environmental stability, and compatibility with scalable all‐oxide CMOS architectures. However, a quantitative understanding of their defect physics remains essential for unlocking intrinsic transport properties and guiding device optimization. Here, a comprehensive strategy combining low‐frequency noise (LFN) spectroscopy and pulsed‐mode electrical measurements is presented to analyze and suppress defect‐induced limitations in high‐mobility Se‐alloyed TeO x (SeTe‐TeO x ) TFTs. LFN analysis reveals that carrier number fluctuations with correlated mobility fluctuations (CMF, Δµ‐Δn ) dominate the noise behavior, with an interfacial defect state density of 1.41 × 10 21 cm −3 eV −1 at 20 Hz, substantially lower than that of benchmark p‐type SnO counterparts. Comparative studies with n‐type InGaZnO and SnO TFTs highlight distinct defect mechanisms and underline the unique defect landscape of p‐type oxides. Furthermore, pulsed I – V and low‐temperature measurements enable temporal decoupling of charge trapping, revealing the intrinsic device performance with field‐effect hole mobilities exceeding 20 cm 2 V −1 s −1 , small subthreshold swing, and minimal hysteresis. These results highlight the key role of defect quantification and suppression in advancing p‐type oxide semiconductors, providing a robust platform for reliable, high‐performance oxide electronics.