Saptarsi Ghosh

High-resolution X-ray diffraction analysis of AlxGa1−xN/InxGa1−xN/GaN on sapphire multilayer structures: Theoretical, simulations, and experimental observations

The work presents a comparative study on the effects of In incorporation in the channel layer of AlGaN/GaN type-II heterostructures grown on c-plane sapphire by Plasma Assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy. The structural characterizations of these samples were performed by High-Resolution X-Ray Diffraction (HRXRD), X-ray Reflectivity (XRR), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy, and High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy. The two-dimensional electron gas in the AlGaN/GaN and AlGaN/InGaN interface was analyzed by electrochemical capacitance voltage and compared with theoretical results based on self-consistent solution of Schordinger–Poisson equations. The carrier profile shows enhanced confinement in InGaN channel (1.4393 × 1013 cm−2 compared to 1.096 × 1013 cm−2 in GaN). On the basis of HRXRD measurements, the stress-strain of the layers was examined. The c- and a-lattice parameters of the epilayers as well as in-plane and out-of plane strains were determined from the ω-2θ for symmetric scan a...

Strong photoluminescence in ammonia plasma treated amorphous‐SiC thin films deposited by laser ablation

Amorphous‐SiC films have been deposited by pulsed laser ablation on silicon substrates. Photoluminescence (PL) studies showed two broad bands with peaks at 1.34 and 1.72 eV for these unhydrogenated films. On NH3 passivation the intensity of the 1.34 eV peak increased by a large factor of 40–50 with full width at half‐maximum (FWHM) decreasing to 13.5 meV at 12 K. The activation energy of this level was found to be 24 meV. These results are in contrast with those from unhydrogenated a‐Si. A possible mechanism responsible for PL enhancement is discussed.

Effects of threading dislocations on drain current dispersion and slow transients in unpassivated AlGaN/GaN/Si heterostructure field-effect transistors

Current transient analysis combined with response to pulsed bias drives have been used to explore the possibilities of threading dislocations affecting the current dispersion characteristics of AlGaN/GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs). A growth strategy is developed to modulate the dislocation density among the heterostructures grown on silicon by plasma-assisted molecular-beam epitaxy. Slow pulsed I-V measurements show severe compressions and appear to be significantly dependent on the threading dislocation density. By analyzing the corresponding slow detrapping process, a deep-level trap with emission time constant in the order of seconds was identified as the cause. Among the specimens, both in the epilayers and at the surface, the number of dislocations was found to have a notable influence on the spatial distribution of deep-level trap density. The observations confirm that the commonly observed degraded frequency performance among AlGaN/GaN HFETs in the form of DC-radio frequency dispersions can at least partly be correlated with threading dislocation density.

Comprehensive strain and band gap analysis of PA-MBE grown AlGaN/GaN heterostructures on sapphire with ultra thin buffer

In this work, cluster tool (CT) Plasma Assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy (PA-MBE) grown AlGaN/GaN heterostructure on c-plane (0 0 0 1) sapphire (Al2O3) were investigated by High Resolution X-ray Diffraction (HRXRD), Room Temperature Raman Spectroscopy (RTRS), and Room Temperature Photoluminescence (RTPL). The effects of strain and doping on GaN and AlGaN layers were investigated thoroughly. The out-of-plane (‘c’) and in-plane (‘a’) lattice parameters were measured from RTRS analysis and as well as reciprocal space mapping (RSM) from HRXRD scan of (002) and (105) plane. The in-plane (out-of plane) strain of the samples were found to be −2.5 × 10−3(1 × 10−3), and −1.7 × 10−3(2 × 10−3) in GaN layer and 5.1 × 10−3 (−3.3 × 10−3), and 8.8 × 10−3(−1.3 × 10−3) in AlGaN layer, respectively. In addition, the band structures of AlGaN/GaN interface were estimated by both theoretical (based on elastic theory) and experimental observations of the RTPL spectrum.

Enhancement of two dimensional electron gas concentrations due to Si3N4 passivation on Al0.3Ga0.7N/GaN heterostructure: strain and interface capacitance analysis

Enhancement of two dimensional electron gas (2DEG) concentrations at Al0.3Ga0.7N/GaN hetero interface after a-Si3N4 (SiN) passivation has been investigated from non-destructive High Resolution X-ray Diffraction (HRXRD) analysis, depletion depth and capacitance-voltage (C-V) profile measurement. The crystalline quality and strained in-plane lattice parameters of Al0.3Ga0.7N and GaN were evaluated from double axis (002) symmetric (ω-2θ) diffraction scan and double axis (105) asymmetric reciprocal space mapping (DA RSM) which revealed that the tensile strain of the Al0.3Ga0.7N layer increased by 15.6% after SiN passivation. In accordance with the predictions from theoretical solution of Schrodinger-Poisson’s equations, both electrochemical capacitance voltage (ECV) depletion depth profile and C-V characteristics analyses were performed which implied effective 9.5% increase in 2DEG carrier density after passivation. The enhancement of polarization charges results from increased tensile strain in the Al0.3Ga0.7N layer and also due to the decreased surface states at the interface of SiN/Al0.3Ga0.7N layer, effectively improving the carrier confinement at the interface.

Evolution and analysis of nitride surface and interfaces by statistical techniques: A correlation with RHEED through kinetic roughening

AbstractIn-situ RHEED and ex-situ AFM characterizations have been employed to investigate transformations of surface topography with the thickness of PAMBE grown AlGaN and InGaN on GaN. The ternary alloys have been grown with identical growth-front roughness as confirmed by XRR and RHEED observations. The spottier RHEED has been observed with increased thickness of the InGaN as opposed to streakier behavior of AlGaN. We have noticed incremental nature of RMS roughness, skewness and kurtosis of InGaN surface compared to GaN or AlGaN from AFM as evident by final spotty RHEED for InGaN. However, the analyzed fractal dimension is lower for InGaN as opposed to AlGaN (DfAlGaN>DfGaN>DfInGaN). From the kinetic roughening perspective of adatoms, the experimental evidences lead to the high correlation between binding energy of the cluster atoms (EbAlN>EbGaN>EbInN) and the modified DDA growth model with dissociation and evaporation to confirm the efficacy of the study. The initial streaky and spotty RHEED of InGaN and AlGaN, respectively, can be attributed to their Eb that causes smoothing and roughening of the GaN surface due to adatoms surface mobility behavior. Therefore, the fractal description reveals the fact during formation of nitride hetero-interface while other AFM results describe the top surface.

Reverse bias leakage current mechanism of AlGaN/InGaN/GaN heterostructure

The reverse bias leakage current mechanism of AlGaN/InGaN/GaN heterostructure is investigated by current-voltage measurement in temperature range from 298 K to 423 K. The Higher electric field across the AlGaN barrier layer of AlGaN/InGaN/GaN double heterostructure due to higher polarization charge is found to be responsible for strong Fowler-Nordheim (FN) tunnelling in the electric field higher than 3.66 MV/cm. For electric field less than 3.56 MV/cm, the reverse bias leakage current is also found to follow the trap assisted Frenkel-Poole (FP) emission in low negative bias region. Analysis of reverse FP emission yielded the barrier height of trap energy level of 0.34 eV with respect to Fermi level.

Comparative DC Characteristic Analysis of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs Grown on Si(111) and Sapphire Substrates by MBE

A comparative assessment of AlGaN/GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) grown by molecular beam epitaxy on silicon and sapphire substrates has been carried out. Large-area power GaN HEMTs with identical device dimensions were fabricated on both substrates. A thicker AlN buffer layer was used for the GaN HEMT on silicon to achieve similar quality and uniformity of GaN epitaxy for rational comparison with that grown on sapphire. Direct-current analysis and physical characterization were carried out to understand the performance of the devices. Mathematical measurement of the instability of the current–voltage (I–V) characteristic at high applied drain bias was carried out to evaluate the performance of both devices. An improved two-dimensional (2D) analysis of the I–V characteristic was performed from a thermal perspective including appropriate scattering effects on the 2D electron gas mobility. The experimental and analytical studies were correlated to reveal the effects of temperature-sensitive scattering phenomena on the mobility as well as on the I–V characteristic at high drain bias in terms of lattice thermal heating. It is observed that the HEMT on Si has improved stability compared with sapphire due to its weaker scattering phenomena at high drain bias, associated with its thermal conductivity. Simulation of 2D thermal mapping was also carried out to distinguish the hot-spot regions of the devices. The comparable electrical performance of these devices illustrates the viability of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on Si(111) to achieve low-cost stable devices with better thermal power handling for high-voltage applications.

Highly Sensitive Acetone Sensor Based on Pd/AlGaN/GaN Resistive Device Grown by Plasma-Assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Highly sensitive acetone sensing performance of Pd/AlGaN/GaN resistive devices in the temperature range of 100 °C–250 °C and in the detection range of 100–1000 ppm was reported. A plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy was used to grow the AlGaN/GaN heterostructure on Si (111) substrate. Structural characterization of the grown epilayers was performed through double-crystal X-ray diffraction whereas atomic force microscopy was used to obtain the roughness of the sensing surface. Resistive mode configuration of the sample was tested toward acetone in the detection range of 100–1000 ppm and in the temperature range of 100 °C–250 °C. The optimum temperature was found to be 150 °C with response magnitude ~95% for the acetone concentration of 1000 ppm. The sensor response time and recovery time were found to be in the range of ~18–44 s and ~25–109 s, respectively. The cross-sensitivity of the device with other interfering species such as butanone, benzene, toluene, and xylene attributed to good acetone selectivity of the devices. Acetone sensing as well as current transport of the Pd/AlGaN/GaN devices was illustrated with effect including Langmuir adsorption–desorption kinetics and Schottky barrier height between Pd/AlGaN interfaces.

Fowler–Nordheim Tunnelling Contribution in AlGaN/GaN on Si (111) Schottky Current

ABSTRACT AlGaN/GaN heterojunction with Schottky metal contact can be modelled with two back-to-back diodes. The forward-biased diode between metal and AlGaN barrier acts at the onset of current with positive bias. Fowler– Nordheim tunnelling is mainly responsible for the electron transport at the low positive bias level. Downward energy band bending of AlGaN barrier with further positive voltage reduces the tunnelling probability due to lowering of the barrier height of the first diode, causing a dramatic change in the current.