INHIBITION OF SURFACE-RELATED ELECTRICAL BREAKDOWN OF LONG P-I-N+ SILICON STRUCTURES()

Semiconductors such as silicon and GaAs appear attractive for use in h igh voltage devices because of their high bulk dielectric strength. Ty pically, however, such devices fail at a voltage well below that expec ted due to a poorly understood, surface-related breakdown process. In this letter we present empirical results which show that such breakdow n of long silicon p+-i-n+ devices can be inhibited by the application of weak visible or near-infrared illumination. These results suggest a technique for avoiding surface flashover in practical high voltage de vices, and provide information about the physical mechanisms responsib le for initiating flashover.