J. Llobet

Inhibiting the absorber/Mo-back contact decomposition reaction in Cu2ZnSnSe4 solar cells: the role of a ZnO intermediate nanolayer

This work reports a process based on the use of an ultrathin (10 nm) ZnO intermediate layer for the improvement of the absorber/back contact interface region in Cu2ZnSnSe4 (CZTSe) kesterite solar cells. Raman microprobe measurements performed directly on the substrate surface after mechanical removal of the absorber layer indicate the occurrence of a decomposition reaction of Cu2ZnSnSe4 in contact with the Mo substrate. This leads to a significant degradation of the quality of the absorber/back contact interface, with the formation of a high density of voids. The presence of an intermediate ZnO layer on the Mo coated substrates inhibits the decomposition reaction, because it prevents interaction between the CZTSe and Mo layers during the annealing process. This leads to a significant improvement in the interface morphology as observed by detailed cross-section scanning electron microscopy. It also correlates with the observed increase of the device conversion efficiency from 2.5% up to 6.0%. The improvement in the optoelectronic characteristics of the cells could be related to a significant decrease of the device series resistance due to the formation of a smoother interface with low density of voids, resulting from the effective inhibition of the CZTSe decomposition reaction at the Mo back contact layer.

Analysis of the AlGaN/GaN vertical bulk current on Si, sapphire, and free-standing GaN substrates

The vertical bulk (drain-bulk) current (Idb) properties of analogous AlGaN/GaN hetero-structures molecular beam epitaxially grown on silicon, sapphire, and free-standing GaN (FS-GaN) have been evaluated in this paper. The experimental Idb (25–300 °C) have been well reproduced with physical models based on a combination of Poole-Frenkel (trap assisted) and hopping (resistive) conduction mechanisms. The thermal activation energies (Ea), the (soft or destructive) vertical breakdown voltage (VB), and the effect of inverting the drain-bulk polarity have also been comparatively investigated. GaN-on-FS-GaN appears to adhere to the resistive mechanism (Ea = 0.35 eV at T = 25–300 °C; VB = 840 V), GaN-on-sapphire follows the trap assisted mechanism (Ea = 2.5 eV at T > 265 °C; VB > 1100 V), and the GaN-on-Si is well reproduced with a combination of the two mechanisms (Ea = 0.35 eV at T > 150 °C; VB = 420 V). Finally, the relationship between the vertical bulk current and the lateral AlGaN/GaN transistor leakage curr...

Micro and nano analysis of 0.2 Ω mm Ti/Al/Ni/Au ohmic contact to AlGaN/GaN

As GaN technology continues to gain popularity, it is necessary to control the ohmic contact properties and to improve device consistency across the whole wafer. In this paper, we use a range of submicron characterization tools to understand the conduction mechanisms through the AlGaN/GaN ohmic contact. Our results suggest that there is a direct path for electron flow between the two dimensional electron gas and the contact pad. The estimated area of these highly conductive pillars is around 5% of the total contact area.

High-sensitivity linear piezoresistive transduction for nanomechanical beam resonators

Highly sensitive conversion of motion into readable electrical signals is a crucial and challenging issue for nanomechanical resonators. Efficient transduction is particularly difficult to realize in devices of low dimensionality, such as beam resonators based on carbon nanotubes or silicon nanowires, where mechanical vibrations combine very high frequencies with miniscule amplitudes. Here we describe an enhanced piezoresistive transduction mechanism based on the asymmetry of the beam shape at rest. We show that this mechanism enables highly sensitive linear detection of the vibration of low-resistivity silicon beams without the need of exceptionally large piezoresistive coefficients. The general application of this effect is demonstrated by detecting multiple-order modes of silicon nanowire resonators made by either top-down or bottom-up fabrication methods. These results reveal a promising approach for practical applications of the simplest mechanical resonators, facilitating its manufacturability by very large-scale integration technologies.

Si/SiC bonded wafer: A route to carbon free SiO2 on SiC

This paper describes the thermal oxidation of Si/SiC heterojunction structures, produced using a layer-transfer process, as an alternative solution to fabricating SiC metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices with lower interface state densities (Dit). Physical characterization demonstrate that the transferred Si layer is relatively smooth, uniform, and essentially monocrystalline. The Si on SiC has been totally or partially thermally oxidized at 900–1150 °C. Dit for both partially and completely oxidized silicon layers on SiC were significantly lower than Dit values for MOS capacitors fabricated via conventional thermal oxidation of SiC. The quality of the SiO2, formed by oxidation of a wafer-bonded silicon layer reported here has the potential to realize a number of innovative heterojunction concepts and devices, including the fabrication of high quality and reliable SiO2 gate oxides.

Enabling electromechanical transduction in silicon nanowire mechanical resonators fabricated by focused ion beam implantation.

We present the fabrication of silicon nanowire (SiNW) mechanical resonators by a resistless process based on focused ion beam local gallium implantation, selective silicon etching and diffusive boron doping. Suspended, doubly clamped SiNWs fabricated by this process presents a good electrical conductivity which enables the electrical read-out of the SiNW oscillation. During the fabrication process, gallium implantation induces the amorphization of silicon that, together with the incorporation of gallium into the irradiated volume, increases the electrical resistivity to values higher than 3 Ω m, resulting in an unacceptably high resistance for electrical transduction. We show that the conductivity of the SiNWs can be restored by performing a high temperature doping process, which allows us to recover the crystalline structure of the silicon and to achieve a controlled resistivity of the structures. Raman spectroscopy and TEM microscopy are used to characterize the recovery of crystallinity, while electrical measurements show a resistivity of 10(-4) Ω m. This resistivity allows to obtain excellent electromechanical transduction, which is employed to characterize the high frequency mechanical response by electrical methods.

Gate current analysis of AlGaN/GaN on silicon heterojunction transistors at the nanoscale

The gate leakage current of AlGaN/GaN (on silicon) high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) is investigated at the micro and nanoscale. The gate current dependence (25–310 °C) on the temperature is used to identify the potential conduction mechanisms, as trap assisted tunneling or field emission. The conductive atomic force microscopy investigation of the HEMT surface has revealed some correlation between the topography and the leakage current, which is analyzed in detail. The effect of introducing a thin dielectric in the gate is also discussed in the micro and the nanoscale.

Fabrication of complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor integrated nanomechanical devices by ion beam patterning

The authors present a novel approach to fabricate nanomechanical devices integrated into complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) circuits. It is based on focused ion beam patterning using two different processes: (i) ion-beam-induced deposition of tethraethoxysilane and (ii) direct exposure of silicon or polysilicon surfaces. In both cases, the irradiated areas sustain a reactive-ion etching process, acting as robust masks for defining nanomechanical devices with submicron resolution. These processes are compared, in terms of throughput, with direct milling of silicon and with patterning of thin aluminum layers. Compatibility with prefabricated CMOS circuits is studied and they found that the process is entirely compatible if the proper exposure conditions are used.

Nanoscale investigation of AlGaN/GaN-on-Si high electron mobility transistors

AlGaN/GaN HEMTs are devices which are strongly influenced by surface properties such as donor states, roughness or any kind of inhomogeneity. The electron gas is only a few nanometers away from the surface and the transistor forward and reverse currents are considerably affected by any variation of surface property within the atomic scale. Consequently, we have used the technique known as conductive AFM (CAFM) to perform electrical characterization at the nanoscale. The AlGaN/GaN HEMT ohmic (drain and source) and Schottky (gate) contacts were investigated by the CAFM technique. The estimated area of these highly conductive pillars (each of them of approximately 20-50 nm radius) represents around 5% of the total contact area. Analogously, the reverse leakage of the gate Schottky contact at the nanoscale seems to correlate somehow with the topography of the narrow AlGaN barrier regions producing larger currents.

Integration of HfO2 on Si/SiC heterojunctions for the gate architecture of SiC power devices

In this paper we present a method for integrating HfO2 into the SiC gate architecture, through the use of a thin wafer bonded Si heterojunction layer. Capacitors consisting of HfO2 on Si, SiC, Si/SiC, and SiO2/SiC have been fabricated and electrically tested. The HfO2/Si/SiC capacitors minimize leakage, with a breakdown electric field of 3.5 MV/cm through the introduction of a narrow band gap semiconductor between the two wide band gap materials. The Si/SiC heterojunction was analyzed using transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray, and Raman analysis, proving that the interface is free of contaminants and that the Si layer remains unstressed.