Monte Carlo simulation: MOSFETs to ion channels

Particle Monte Carlo simulation has been applied widely to semiconductor devices for simulation of transport at the Boltzmann equation level. Because of the nature of the algorithm, it is practical to include complete details of the bandstructure, scattering mechanisms, and size quantization effects at different level of approximation. This is very relevant for modern scaled devices which exhibit a mixture of semi-classical and quantum transport features. Recent work has extended the model to treat coupled electro-thermal simulation, to understand the heating processes that may lead to device failure in integrated devices. For this, the physical model needs to be extended considerably, to include the full 3D phonon dispersion dispersion, optical-acoustic phonon decay rates and phonon transport. Monte Carlo simulation an also find useful applications, alongside molecular dynamics, in biolgical simulation. With an appropriate model transformation, it is possible to simulate for instance charge transport in ion channels, by including the water background in an implicit way by including and appropriate ion-water scattering rate, to mimic the Brownian dynamics nature of the transport. This talk will present a range of simulation examples, from nanoscale MOSFETSs to various biological ion channels for which measurements are available.
Umberto Ravaioli is a Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He received the Laurea Dr. degree in electronics engineering and the Laurea Dr. degree in physics from the University of Bologna, Italy, in 1980 and 1982, respectively. He completed a Research Fellowship at the Fondazione Ugo Bordoni, Rome, Italy in 1982, and conducted postgraduate research at Laureato Frequentatore. He served in the Department of Electronics Engineering, University of Bologna, Italy, from November 1980 – October 1982, where he supervised 3 student theses. He received his Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from Arizona State University, Tempe, in 1986. Since 1986, he has been with ECE at UIUC where his current research interests are in the areas of Monte Carlo device simulation, nanoelectronics, and computer-based education. In the area of honors, recognition, and outstanding achievements for teaching he has received the Accenture Award for Excellence in Advising, 2006, 2007; the Andersen Consulting Award for Excellence in Advising, 1990, 1994; acknowledgement on the Advisors List, College of Engineering, University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign, 1990, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2004, 2006, 2007; and was featured on the List of Excellent Teachers, UIUC, Spring 1990, Fall 1990, Spring 2004, Spring 2005, Fall 2006. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Physics (1999) and a Fellow of the IEEE (2003).