Low-frequency noise in amorphous indium-gallium-zinc oxide thin-film transistors from subthreshold to saturation

We investigate the low-frequency noise (LFN) behaviors of amorphous indium-gallium-zinc oxide thin-film transistors in the subthreshold, Ohmic, and saturation regimes. Measured LFNs are proportional to 1/f(gamma), with gamma=0.8-0.9 in all operation regimes. It is found that the LFN behavior follows the carrier number fluctuation model in the subthreshold regime, whereas in the Ohmic and saturation regimes, it agrees well with the bulk mobility fluctuation model. We also observe that the origin of 1/f noise in the Ohmic regime changes from the bulk mobility fluctuation to the carrier number fluctuation as the channel length decreases. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3491553]