Influence of the interface-state density on the electron mobility in silicon inversion layers

The electron inversion-layer mobility in a metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor, as a function of the transverse electric field, has been studied in the temperature range 13-300K for different interface-state densities. Experimental data are in excellent agreement with a simple semi-empirical model. However, the term attributed by other authors to phonon scattering depends on the interface-state density, even at high temperatures, and becomes negative at low temperatures. These facts are shown to be a consequence of the dependence of coulomb scattering on the transverse electric field.