Silicon single-electron tunnelling device interfaced with a CMOS inverter

A silicon single-electron tunnelling (SET) device with an oxidation-controlled narrow channel was fabricated on a silicon-on-insulator substrate. Measurements at liquid helium temperature show the clear Coulomb blockade effects. The Coulomb oscillations of the SET device are successfully transformed to voltage oscillations by combining it with an nMOSFET load. In addition, it is demonstrated that the obtained small voltage signals are amplified with a CMOS inverter operating at room temperature. These results constitute an important step toward the future hybrid Si ULSIs of SET and CMOS devices.