Plasmonic noise of field-effect transistors operating at terahertz frequencies

We analyze electronic noise in field-effect transistors associated with plasma waves in the terahertz frequency domain by using a numerical approach based on the coupled hydrodynamic and Poisson equations. The current and voltage noise spectra, calculated by means of the transfer impedance method, exhibit a series of peaks associated with two- and three-dimensional plasma resonances. The two-dimensional plasma peaks have been found to depend on the channel length including gated and ungated regions. Under asymmetric boundary conditions, electrical instabilities characterized by terahertz oscillations of the drain voltage and gate current can be reached at sufficiently high values of the total drain current. A resonant enhancement of the plasma peaks in the noise spectra has been found to be a precursor of the instability onset. Through a spatial analysis of the local contributions we have shown that the main contribution to the total noise at frequencies near the plasma resonance comes from the ungated n-region placed between the source and the gate contacts. (special issue on unsolved problems of noise in physics, biology and technology)