P. P. Chow

ULTRAVIOLET-SENSITIVE, VISIBLE-BLIND GAN PHOTODIODES FABRICATED BY MOLECULAR BEAM EPITAXY

GaN p–i–n photovoltaic diode arrays were fabricated from epitaxial films deposited on sapphire by molecular beam epitaxy. Peak UV responsivity was 0.11 A/W at 360 nm, corresponding to 48% internal quantum efficiency. Visible rejection over 400–800 nm was 3–4 orders of magnitude. Typical pulsed time response was measured at 8.2 μs. Spectral response modeling was performed to analyze the photocurrent contributions from photogenerated carrier drift in the depletion region and from minority carrier diffusion in the p and n layers. With the model, a maximum internal quantum efficiency of 55% at 360 nm was calculated for the photovoltaic diode structure.

MgZnO/AlGaN heterostructure light-emitting diodes

We report on p–n junction light-emitting diodes fabricated from MgZnO∕ZnO∕AlGaN∕GaN triple heterostructures. Energy band diagrams of the light-emitting diode structure incorporating piezoelectric and spontaneous polarization fields were simulated, revealing a strong hole confinement near the n‐ZnO∕p‐AlGaN interface with a hole sheet density as large as 1.82×1013cm−2 for strained structures. The measured current–voltage (IV) characteristics of the triple heterostructure p–n junctions have rectifying characteristics with a turn-on voltage of ∼3.2V. Electron-beam-induced current measurements confirmed the presence of a p–n junction located at the n‐ZnO∕p‐AlGaN interface. Strong optical emission was observed at ∼390nm as expected for excitonic optical transitions in these structures. Experimental spectral dependence of the photocurrent confirmed the excitonic origin of the optical transition at 390nm. Light emission was measured up to 650K, providing additional confirmation of the excitonic nature of the opti...

Electrical detection of immobilized proteins with ungated AlGaN∕GaN high-electron-mobility Transistors

Ungated AlGaN∕GaN high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) structures were functionalized in the gate region with aminopropyl silane. This serves as a binding layer to the AlGaN surface for attachment of fluorescent biological probes. Fluorescence microscopy shows that the chemical treatment creates sites for specific absorption of probes. Biotin was then added to the functionalized surface to bind with high affinity to streptavidin proteins. The HEMT drain-source current showed a clear decrease of 4μA as this protein was introduced to the surface, showing the promise of this all-electronic detection approach for biological sensing.

dc and rf performance of proton-irradiated AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors

AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) with a range of gate lengths (0.8–1.2 μm) and widths (100–200 μm) were exposed to 40 MeV protons at fluences of 5×109 or 5×1010 cm−2. The drain–source currents in the devices decreased by 15%–20% at the higher fluence, while the extrinsic transconductance decreased by ∼30% under the same conditions. Based on the increases in the reverse breakdown voltage and the channel resistance, the main degradation mechanism is believed to be creation of deep trap states in the band gap which remove electrons from the channel. The maximum frequency of oscillation, fMAX, also decreased as a result of the proton-induced damage, with a change of −20% at the shorter gate widths and −50% at the largest widths. The reverse recovery switching time was essentially unaffected by the irradiation, remaining at ∼1.6×10−8 s. Postradiation annealing at 800 °C was successful in restoring the dc and rf performance parameters to ⩾90% of their original values. The AlGaN/GaN HEMTs are...

Surface polarity dependence of Mg doping in GaN grown by molecular-beam epitaxy

The effect of surface polarity on the growth of Mg-doped GaN thin films on c-plane sapphire substrates by molecular-beam epitaxy has been investigated. The doping behavior of Mg and resulting conductivity of the doped layers were found to strongly depend on the surface polarity of the growing GaN planes. The samples grown on the Ga-polar face (A face) exhibited a p-type conductivity with a free-hole concentration up to 5×1017 cm−3, while the samples grown on the N-polar face (B face) were highly resistive or semi-insulating. The incorporation of residual impurities (O, Si, and C) in the two different polar surfaces was studied by secondary ion mass spectrometry analysis and its effect on the Mg doping was discussed. Our results suggest that the A face (Ga face) is the favored surface polarity for achieving p-type conductivity during the growth of Mg-doped GaN.

Very high channel conductivity in low-defect AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistor structures

Low defect AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) structures, with very high values of electron mobility (>1800 cm2/V s) and sheet charge density (>3×1013 cm−2), were grown by rf plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on sapphire and SiC, resulting in sheet resistivity values down to ∼100 Ω/◻ at room temperature. Fabricated 1.2 μm gate devices showed excellent current-voltage characteristics, including a zero gate saturation current density of ∼1.3 A/mm and a peak transconductance of ∼260 mS/mm. Here, an all MBE growth of optimized AlN/GaN HEMT structures plus the results of thin-film characterizations and device measurements are presented.

Nanofabrication of thin chromium film deposited on Si(100) surfaces by tip induced anodization in atomic force microscopy

Writing of nanostructures on thin metal films using atomic force microscopy (AFM) was demonstrated. The writing experiments were done in a nitrogen ambient having variable humidity. Using a p‐type heavily doped silicon AFM tip, a bias voltage was independently applied between the tip and the surface of a thin chromium layer deposited on a Si(100) substrate. Protruded patterns of various shapes were formed only on the water‐adsorbed chromium surface when applying a negative bias on the tip. Their sizes were found to be dependent on the writing time, the bias voltage, and the humidity. The smallest feature size obtained is about 20 nm. From Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) analysis, the products are shown to be Cr oxides. The surface modification mechanism appears to be tip‐induced local oxidation, i.e., anodization.

300°C GaN/AlGaN Heterojunction Bipolar Transistor

A GaN/AlGaN heterojunction bipolar transistor has been fabricated using Cl 2 /Ar dry etching for mesa formation. As the hole concentration increases due to more efficient ionization of the Mg acceptors at elevated temperatures (> 250°C), the device shows improved gain. Future efforts should focus on methods for reducing base resistance, which are briefly summarized.

Influence of 60Co γ-rays on dc performance of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors

AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) with different gate length and widths were irradiated with 60Co γ-rays to doses up to 600 Mrad. Little measurable change in dc performance of the devices was observed for doses lower than 300 Mrad. At the maximum dose employed, the forward gate current was significantly decreased, with an accompanying increase in reverse breakdown voltage. This is consistent with a decrease in effective carrier density in the channel as a result of the introduction of deep electron trapping states. The threshold voltage shifted to more negative voltages as a result of the irradiation, while the magnitude of the drain–source current was relatively unaffected. This is consistent with a strong increase of trap density in the material. The magnitude of the decrease in transconductance of the AlGaN/GaN HEMTs is roughly comparable to the decrease in dc current gain observed in InGaP/GaAs heterojunction bipolar transistors irradiated under similar conditions.

Development of enhancement mode AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistors

Enhancement mode AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) were fabricated from originally depletion-mode structures using oxygen plasma treatment on the gate area prior to the gate metallization. Starting with a depletion mode AlN/GaN HEMT, the threshold voltage of the HEMT could be shifted from −3.2 to 1 V depending on the oxygen plasma treatment time to partially convert the AlN barrier layer into Al oxide. The gate current was reduced and the current-voltage curves show metal-oxide semiconductor diodelike characteristics after oxygen plasma treatment.