Barrier height inhomogeneities on Pd/n-type 4H-SiC Schottky barrier diodes in the 300-800 K temperature range have been investigated. Palladium is known to form silicide above 673 K. Temperature dependent current-voltage (I-V) characteristics were analyzed. Barrier height (BH) and ideality factor (n) were found to be strongly temperature dependent. Barrier height increased, whilst ideality factor decreased with increasing in temperature and the Richardson plot showed some deviation from linearity. This was attributed to barrier inhomogeneities at the metal-semiconductor interface which resulted in a distribution of barrier heights. From the modified Richardson plot, the modified Richardson constant, A** was found to be 155 Acm(-2)K(-2) and 87 Acm(-2)K(-2) in the 300-525 K and the 550-800 K temperature ranges respectively.

This paper reports on the state of women in physics in Zimbabwe since 2002. Three universities have physics departments: the University of Zimbabwe, National University of Science and Technology, and Midlands State University. These institutions are all state owned. A 10-year survey shows a limited female enrollment at the undergraduate level. We report on the challenges faced by women in physics starting from the primary level of education due to culture and custom. Another reason is the lack of resources owing to the economic hardships currently experienced in the country. The authors suggest possible solutions to the current shortage of women in physics and in science in general.

We have investigated the current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), tungsten (W) and palladium (Pd) Schottky contacts on n-type 4H-SiC in the 300–800K temperature range. Results extracted from I-V measurements of Schottky barrier diodes showed that barrier height (ФBo) and ideality factor (n) were strongly dependent on temperature. Schottky barrier heights for contacts of all the metals showed an increase with temperature between 300K and 800K. This was attributed to barrier inhomogeneities at the interface between the metal and the semiconductor, which resulted in a distribution of barrier heights at the interface. Ideality factors of Ni, Co and Pd decreased from 1.6 to 1.0 and for W the ideality factor decreased from 1.1 to 1.0 when the temperature was increased from 300K to 800K respectively. The device parameters were compared to assess advantages and disadvantages of the metals for envisaged applications.