J. K. Sheu

Influence of Si-doping on the characteristics of InGaN-GaN multiple quantum-well blue light emitting diodes

A detailed study on the effects of Si-doping in the GaN barrier layers of InGaN-GaN multiquantum well (MQW) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) has been performed. Compared with unintentionally doped samples, X-ray diffraction results indicate that Si-doping in barrier layers can improve the crystal and interfacial qualities of the InGaN-GaN MQW LEDs. It was also found that the forward voltage is 3.5 and 4.52 V, the 20-mA luminous intensity is 36.1 and 25.1 mcd for LEDs with a Si-doped barrier and an unintentionally doped barrier, respectively. These results suggests that one can significantly improve the performance of InGaN-GaN MQW LEDs by introducing Si doping in the GaN barrier layers.

GaN metal-semiconductor-metal ultraviolet photodetectors with transparent indium-tin-oxide Schottky contacts

Indium-tin-oxide (ITO) layers were deposited onto n-GaN films and/or glass substrates by electron-beam evaporation. With proper annealing, we found that we could improve the optical properties of the ITO layers and achieve a maximum transmittance of 98% at 360 nm. GaN-based metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodetectors with ITO transparent contacts were also fabricated. A maximum 0.12-A photocurrent with a photocurrent to dark current contrast higher than five orders of magnitude during ultraviolet irradiation were obtained for a photodetector annealed at 600/spl deg/C. We also found that the maximum photo responsivity at 345 nm is 7.2 and 0.9 A/W when the detector is biased at 5 and 0.5 V, respectively.

Nitride-based LEDs with 800/spl deg/C grown p-AlInGaN-GaN double-cap layers

GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with various p-cap layers were prepared. It was found that surface morphologies of the LEDs with 800/spl deg/C grown cap layers were rough due to the low lateral growth rate of GaN. It was also found that 20-mA forward voltage of the LED with 800/spl deg/C grown p-AlInGaN-GaN double-cap layer was only 3.05 V. Furthermore, it was found that we could achieve a high output power and a long lifetime by using the 800/spl deg/C grown p-AlInGaN-GaN double-cap layer.

GaN metal-semiconductor-metal ultraviolet sensors with various contact electrodes

Indium-tin-oxide (ITO), Au, Ni, and Pt layers were deposited onto n-GaN films and/or glass substrates by electron-beam evaporation. With proper annealing, it was found that we could improve the optical properties of the ITO layers and achieve a maximum transmittance of 98% at 360 nm. GaN-based MSM UV sensors with ITO, Au, Ni, and Pt as contact electrodes were also fabricated. It was found that we could achieve a maximum 0.12 A photocurrent and a photocurrent to dark current contrast higher than five orders of magnitude for the 600/spl deg/C-annealed ITO/n-GaN MSM UV sensor at a 5-V bias voltage. We also found that the maximum responsivity at 345 nm was 7.2 A/W and 0.9 A/W when the 600/spl deg/C-annealed ITO/n-GaN MSM UV sensor was biased at 5 V and 0.5 V, respectively. These values were much larger than those observed from other metal/n-GaN MSM UV sensors. However, the existence of photoconductive gain in the 600/spl deg/C-annealed ITO/n-GaN MSM UV sensor also results in a slower operation speed and a smaller 3-dB bandwidth as compared with the metal/n-GaN MSM UV sensors.

GaN and InGaN Metal-Semiconductor-Metal Photodetectors with Different Schottky Contact Metals

The characterizations of n-type doped GaN, p-type doped GaN and n-type doped In0.2Ga0.8N Schottky metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) photodetectors were reported. The epilayers were grown on sapphire by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOVCD). Schottky contacts were fabricated using Au, Ti, Ni and Pt metals. The dark and illuminated current–voltage characteristics of GaN and InGaN MSM photodetectors with different Schottky metals were studied. The n-GaN MSM photodetectors with Au Schottky contacts showed better responsivity than those with other metals and they were also better than Au/p-GaN and Ti/n-In0.2Ga0.8N MSMs. The effects of the pitch width between the interdigitate fingers and the thickness of Schottky metals on the characteristics of photocurrents were also studied.

The doping process and dopant characteristics of GaN

The characteristic effects of doping with impurities such as Si, Ge, Se, O, Mg, Be, and Zn on the electrical and optical properties of GaN-based materials are reviewed. In addition, the roles of unintentionally introduced impurities, such as C, H, and O, and grown-in defects, such as vacancy and antisite point defects, are also discussed. The doping process during epitaxial growth of GaN, AlGaN, InGaN, and their superlattice structures is described. Doping using the diffusion process and ion implantation techniques is also discussed. A p-n junction formed by Si implantation into p-type GaN is successfully fabricated. The results on crystal structure, electrical resistivity, carrier mobility, and optical spectra obtained by means of x-rays, low-temperature Hall measurements, and photoluminescence are also discussed.

High-efficiency InGaN-GaN MQW green light-emitting diodes with CART and DBR structures

Distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) and charge asymmetric resonance tunneling (CART) structures were applied to nitride-based green light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to enhance their output efficiency It was found that we can reduce the forward voltage at 20 mA from 3.7 to 3.2 V with the inclusion of CART structure. It was also found that the electroluminescence peak wavelength of the CART LED is less sensitive to the amount of injection current. The output power and external quantum efficiency of the CART LED with DBR structure measured at 20 mA can reach 7.2 mW and 11.25%, respectively.

InGaN/GaN light emitting diodes activated in O/sub 2/ ambient

Mg-doped GaN epitaxial layers were annealed in pure O/sub 2/ and pure N/sub 2/. It was found that we could achieve a low-resistive p-type GaN by pure O/sub 2/ annealing at a temperature as low as 400/spl deg/C. With a 500/spl deg/C annealing temperature, it was found that the forward voltage and dynamic resistance of the InGaN/GaN light emitting diode (LED) annealed in pure O/sub 2/ were both smaller than those values observed from InGaN/GaN LED annealed in pure N/sub 2/. It was also found that an incomplete activation of Mg will result in a shorter LED lifetime.

n ¿ -GaN formed by Si implantation into p-GaN

28Si+ implantation into Mg-doped GaN, followed by thermal annealing in N2 was performed to achieve n+-GaN layers. Multiple implantation was used to form a uniform Si implanted region. It was found that the carrier concentration of the films changed from 3×1017 cm−3 (p-type) to 5×1019 cm−3 (n-type) when the samples were annealed in N2 ambient at 1000 °C. The activation efficiency of Si in Mg-doped GaN was as high as 27%. In addition, planar GaN n+–p junctions formed by Si-implanted GaN:Mg were also achieved.

Ohmic contacts to p-type GaN mediated by polarization fields in thin InxGa1−xN capping layers

Low-resistance ohmic contacts are demonstrated using thin p-type InGaN layers on p-type GaN. It is shown that the tunneling barrier width is drastically reduced by polarization-induced electric fields in the strained InGaN capping layers resulting in an increase of the hole tunneling probability through the barrier and a significant decrease of the specific contact resistance. The specific contact resistance of Ni (10 nm)/Au (30 nm) contacts deposited on the InGaN capping layers was determined by the transmission line method. Specific contact resistances of 1.2×10−2 Ω cm2 and 6×10−3 Ω cm2 were obtained for capping layer thicknesses of 20 nm and 2 nm, respectively.Low-resistance ohmic contacts are demonstrated using thin p-type InGaN layers on p-type GaN. It is shown that the tunneling barrier width is drastically reduced by polarization-induced electric fields in the strained InGaN capping layers resulting in an increase of the hole tunneling probability through the barrier and a significant decrease of the specific contact resistance. The specific contact resistance of Ni (10 nm)/Au (30 nm) contacts deposited on the InGaN capping layers was determined by the transmission line method. Specific contact resistances of 1.2×10−2 Ω cm2 and 6×10−3 Ω cm2 were obtained for capping layer thicknesses of 20 nm and 2 nm, respectively.