First-principles-based screening method for resistivity scaling of anisotropic metals

Abstract

The resistivity scaling of metals is a crucial limiting factor for further downscaling of interconnects in nanoelectronic devices that affects signal delay, heat production, and energy consumption. Here, we generalize a commonly considered figure of merit for selecting promising candidate metals with highly anisotropic Fermi surfaces in terms of their electronic transport properties at the nanoscale. For this, we introduce a finite-temperature transport tensor, based on band structures obtained from first principles. This transport tensor allows for a straightforward comparison between highly anisotropic metals in nanostructures with different lattice orientations and arbitrary transport directions. By evaluating the temperature dependence of the tensor components, we also assess the validity of a Fermi surface-based evaluation of the transport properties at zero temperature, rather than considering standard operating temperature conditions.

arXiv comment15 pages, 9 figures, updated numerical integration scheme and analysis of temperature dependence

References in corpus (7)

• Quantum ESPRESSO: a modular and open-source software project for quantum simulations of materials
• Pseudopotentials for high-throughput DFT calculations
• Thickness dependence of the resistivity of Platinum group metal thin films
• Ab initio screening of metallic MAX ceramics for advanced interconnect applications
• Resistivity scaling and electron relaxation times in metallic nanowires
• Modeling surface roughness scattering in metallic nanowires
• Resistivity scaling model for metals with conduction band anisotropy