Efficient injection-type ballistic rectification in Si/SiGe cross junctions

Tunable inertial-ballistic rectification is studied in a nanoscale injection-type Si/SiGe rectifier in the hot-electron regime. The rectifier consists of a cascade of two nanoscale cross junctions in series. Two pairs of opposing current injectors merge under 30∘30∘ into a straight central voltage stem. The electron densities in the injectors and the stem can be adjusted separately by two local top-gates. The measurements reveal a substantial efficiency increase for a nearly depleted stem. The efficiency of ballistic rectifiers can be expressed by the transfer resistance RT (output voltage divided by input current), the best value we achieve is 800Ω.