Silicon-Based Single-Electron-Tunneling Transistor Operated at 4.2 K

We have fabricated single-electron-tunneling transistors using silicon which is a useful material for device applications. The device is composed of thin polycrystalline silicon film patterned by electron-beam lithography and its thermally grown oxidized film. We have observed, in this device, periodic conductance oscillations as a function of gate voltage and nonlinear resistances as a function of drain voltage at 4.2 K. These experimental results are in agreement with the theory of Coulomb blockade. We conclude that the observed behavior results from the charging energy of single-electron tunneling.