We discuss the calculation of the carrier mobility in silicon films within
the quantum Non-Equilibrium Green's Functions (NEGF) framework. We introduce a
new method for the extraction of the carrier mobility that is free from contact
resistance contamination, and provides accurate mobilities at a reasonable
cost, with minimal needs for ensemble averages. We then introduce a new
paradigm for the definition of the partial mobility μM associated with a
given elastic scattering mechanism "M", taking phonons (PH) as a reference
(μM−1=μPH+M−1−μPH−1). We argue that this definition
makes better sense in a quantum transport framework as it is free from long
range interference effects that can appear in purely ballistic calculations. As
a matter of fact, these mobilities satisfy Matthiessen's rule for three
mechanisms [surface roughness (SR), remote Coulomb scattering (RCS) and
phonons] much better than the usual, single mechanism calculations. We also
discuss the problems raised by the long range spatial correlations in the RCS
disorder. Finally, we compare semi-classical Kubo-Greenwood (KG) and quantum
NEGF calculations. We show that KG and NEGF are in reasonable agreement for
phonon and RCS, yet not for SR. We point to possible deficiencies in the
treatment of SR scattering in KG, opening the way for further improvements.Comment: Submitted to Journal of Applied Physic