Multigated

Multigated is a term used in transistor technology to describe architectures in which two or more gate electrodes provide electrostatic control over a semiconductor channel. This approach contrasts with traditional single-gate MOSFETs and is employed to improve gate control, scaling behavior, and drive performance in increasingly small devices.

Common multigated configurations include double-gate devices, where gates bookend a thin semiconductor body to control current from both sides; and tri-gate structures such as FinFETs, where the gate wraps around a vertical fin and covers three faces (two sidewalls and the top). Researchers have also explored quad-gate and higher-order arrangements, as well as gate-all-around (GAA) concepts that encircle the channel on all sides. These designs aim to suppress short-channel effects and achieve steeper subthreshold slopes, enabling continued scaling of transistors.

Advantages of multigated devices include stronger electrostatic control, reduced leakage in deep submicron technologies, higher drive current efficiency for a given footprint, and improved potential for power-performance optimization. They also enable nonplanar geometries that can simplify integration of three-dimensional layouts in advanced logic.

Drawbacks include increased fabrication complexity, variability, and manufacturing costs. Multigated structures require precise high-aspect-ratio patterning, etching, and conformal gate deposition, which can introduce yield and process challenges during large-scale production.

Multigated architectures have played a central role in the development of modern high-performance transistors, notably in FinFET-based commercial processes, and continue to influence gate-all-around approaches in research and future nodes. See also FinFET, gate-all-around transistor, MOSFET.