The Materials Issues and Applications of Amorphous Silicon Thin Film Transistors

Abstract

ABSTRACTRecently considerable interest has been generated in the application of thin film transistor (TFT) technology in electronic input and output devices. Amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) has made a major impact in these applications because of the relative ease with which the material can be economically manufactured over large areas. This paper will review in particular the current status of a-Si:H TFTs in liquid crystal display and printer applications, in addition to sensor/TFT arrays for page width input scanner document readers. There are a number of materials issues which limit the performance of these devices. In addition, there are some technological issues which influence the yield of the processes used to fabricate these electronic devices over large areas. Some novel new devices have been recently developed which dramatically increase the operating voltage of a- Si:H TFTs. Other new structures have been proposed and demonstrated for increasing the current and speed of these devices.