Two Mechanisms of Blueshift of Edge Emission in InGaN-Based Epilayers and Multiple Quantum Wells

We present the results of a comparative photoluminescence(PL) study of GaN and InGaN-based epilayers, and InGaN/GaN multiple quantum wells(MQWs). Room-temperature PL spectra were measured for a very broad range of optical excitation from 10 mW/cm2 up to 1 MW/cm2. In contrast to GaN epilayers, all In-containing samples exhibited an excitation-induced blueshift of the peak emission. In addition, the blueshift of the emission in the InGaN epilayers with the same composition as the quantum well was significantly smaller. The comparison of the blueshift in the “bulk” InGaN and in the MQWs allowed us to separate two different mechanisms responsible for this effect: (i) filling of the localized states in In-rich areas and (ii) screening of the polarizationelectric field in strained MQW structures

Dual Band Deep Ultraviolet AlGaN Photodetectors

We report on the design, fabrication and characterization of a back-illuminated voltage bias selectable dual-band AlGaN UV photodetector. The photodetector can separate UVA and W-B band radiation by bias switching a two terminal n-p-n homojunction structure that is fabricated in the same pixel. When a forward bias is applied between the top and bottom electrodes, the detector can sense UV-A and reject W-B band radiation. Alternatively, under reverse bias, the photodetector can sense UV-B and reject UV-A band radiation

Accumulation Hole Layer in p-GaN/AlGaN Heterostructures

We present the results on piezoelectric and pyroelectricdoping in AlGaN-on-GaN and GaN-on-AlGaN heterostructures and demonstrate p-GaN/AlGaN structures with accumulation hole layer. Our results indicate that polarization charge can induce up to 5×1013 cm−2 holes at the AlGaN/GaN heterointerfaces. We show that the transition from three-dimensional (3D) to two-dimensional (2D) hole gas can be only achieved for hole sheet densities on the order of 1013 cm−2 or higher. At lower densities, only 3D-hole accumulation layer may exist. These results suggest that a piezoelectrically induced 2D-hole gas can be used for the reduction of the base spreading resistance in AlGaN/GaN-based heterostructurebipolar transistors

AlGaN/GaN Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Heterostructure Field-Effect Transistors on SiC Substrates

We report on AlGaN/GaN metal–oxide–semiconductor heterostructurefield-effect transistors (MOS-HFETs) grown over insulating 4H–SiC substrates. We demonstrate that the dc and microwave performance of the MOS-HFETs is superior to that of conventional AlGaN/GaN HFETs, which points to the high quality of SiO2/AlGaNheterointerface. The MOS-HFETs could operate at positive gate biases as high as +10 V that doubles the channel current as compared to conventional AlGaN/GaN HFETs of a similar design. The gate leakage current was more than six orders of magnitude smaller than that for the conventional AlGaN/GaN HFETs. The MOS-HFETs exhibited stable operation at elevated temperatures up to 300 °Cwith excellent pinch-off characteristics. These results clearly establish the potential of using AlGaN/GaN MOS-HFET approach for high power microwave and switching devices

Pulsed Atomic Layer Epitaxy of Quaternary AlInGaN Layers

In this letter, we report on a material deposition scheme for quaternary AlxInyGa1−x–yN layers using a pulsed atomic layer epitaxy (PALE) technique. The PALE approach allows accurate control of the quaternary layer composition and thickness by simply changing the number of aluminum,indium, and gallium pulses in a unit cell and the number of unit cell repeats. Using PALE, AlInGaN layers with Al mole fractions in excess of 40% and strong room-temperature photoluminescence peaks at 280 nm can easily be grown even at temperatures lower than 800 °C

Indium–silicon co-doping of high-aluminum-content AlGaN for solar blind photodetectors

We report on an indium–silicon co-doping approach for high-Al-content AlGaN layers. Using this approach, very smooth crack-free n-type AlGaN films as thick as 0.5 μm with Al mole fraction up to 40% were grown over sapphire substrates. The maximum electron concentration in the layers, as determined by Hall measurements, was as high as 8×1017 cm−3 and the Hall mobility was up to 40 cm2/Vs. We used this doping technique to demonstrate solar-blind transparent Schottky barrierphotodetectors with the cut-off wavelength of 278 nm

Estrogen-Dependent Expression and Subcellular Localization of the Tight Junction Protein Claudin-4 in HEC-1A Endometrial Cancer Cells

Endometrial cancer is the most common female reproductive cancer in the United States and is associated with deregulated tight junction protein expression. Given the highly estrogen-responsive nature of this tissue, we investigated the effects of estrogen and its agonist, 4-OH TAM, on the expression and subcellular localization of the tight junction protein claudin-4 (CLDN-4), in HEC-1A endometrial cancer cells. In untreated HEC-1A cells, we observed dramatic overexpression of claudin-4 protein. In addition, differential detergent extraction analysis indicated that claudin-4 was localized primarily in the membrane but also found in the cytosolic, nuclear and cytoskeletal fractions. Upon exposure of HEC-1A to estradiol (E2), we observed a biphasic effect both on the overall expression of claudin-4 protein and on its cytosolic and cytoskeletal presence as demonstrated by immunoblot analysis. Immunofluorescence analysis also revealed a biphasic effect of E2 on claudin-4 expression. In contrast, we observed no changes in expression levels nor in the subcellular distribution patterns of claudin-4 in HEC-1A cells treated with different concentrations of 4-OH TAM. The intracellular presence of CLDN-4 coupled with the biphasic effects of E2 on CLDN-4 expression in the cytoskeleton suggest that this protein may be involved in cell signaling to and from TJs

SiO\u3csub\u3e2\u3c/sub\u3e-Passivated Lateral-Geometry GaN Transparent Schottky-Barrier Detectors

We report on a transparent Schottky-barrierultraviolet detector on GaN layers over sapphire substrates. Using SiO2 surface passivation, reverse leakage currents were reduced to a value as low as 1 pA at 5 V reverse bias for 200 μm diameter device. The device exhibits a high internal gain, about 50, at low forward biases. The response time (about 15 ns) is RC limited, even in the internal gain regime. A record low level of the noise spectral density, 5×10−23 A2/Hz, was measured at 10 Hz. We attribute this low noise level to the reduced reverse leakage current