1/f Noise in Graphene Field-Effect Transistors: Dependence on the Device Channel Area

ABSTRACTWe carried out a systematic experimental study of the low-frequency noise characteristics in a large number of single and bilayer graphene transistors. The prime purpose was to determine the dominant noise sources in these devices and the effect of aging on the current-voltage and noise characteristics. The analysis of the noise spectral density dependence on the surface area of the graphene channel indicates that the dominant contributions to the 1/f electronic noise come from the graphene channel region itself. Aging of graphene transistors due to exposure to ambient for over a month resulted in substantially increased noise, which was attributed to the decreasing mobility of graphene and increasing contact resistance. The noise spectral density in both single and bilayer graphene transistors shows a non-monotonic dependence on the gate bias. This observation confirms that the 1/f noise characteristics of graphene transistors are qualitatively different from those of conventional silicon metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors.