Plasma-induced-damage of GaN

Plasma-induced-damage often degrades the electrical and optical properties of compound semiconductor devices. Despite the fact that the binding energy of GaN is larger than that for more conventional III--V compounds, etch damage is still a concern. Photoluminescence measurements and atomic force microscopy have been used to determine the damage induced in GaN by exposure to both electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) and inductively coupled plasmas (ICP) generated Ar plasmas

Effect of Impurities with Internal Structure on Multiband Superconductors - Possible Enhancement of Transition Temperature -

We study inelastic (dynamical) impurity scattering effects in two-band superconductors with the same ($s_{++}$ wave) or different ($s_\pm$ wave) sign order parameters. We focus on the enhancement of the superconducting transition temperature $T_{\rm c}$ by magnetic interband scattering with the interchange of crystal-field singlet ground and multiplet excited states. Either the $s_{++}$-wave or $s_\pm$-wave state is favored by the impurity-mediated pairing, which depends on the magnetic and nonmagnetic scattering strengths derived from the hybridization of the impurity states with the conduction bands. The details are examined for the singlet-triplet configuration that is suggestive of Pr impurities in the skutterudite superconductor LaOs$_4$Sb$_{12}$.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, to appear in J. Phys. Soc. Jpn. Vol. 79, No. 9 (2010

Depth and thermal stability of dry etch damage in GaN Schottky diodes

GaN Schottky diodes were exposed to N2 or H2 Inductively Coupled Plasmas prior to deposition of the rectifying contact. Subsequent annealing, wet photochemical etching or (NH4)2S surface passivation treatments were examined for their effect on diode current- voltage characteristics. We found that either annealing at 750 °C under N2, or removal of ~500-600 Å of the surface essentially restored the initial I-V characteristics. There was no measurable improvement in the plasma-exposed diode behavior with (NH4)2S treatments

Inductively Coupled Plasma Etching in ICl- and IBr-Based Chemistries: Part I. GaAs, GaSb and AlGaAs

High density plasma etching of GaAs, GaSb and AIGaAs was performed in IC1/Ar and lBr/Ar chemistries using an Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) source. GaSb and AlGaAs showed maxima in their etch rates for both plasma chemistries as a function of interhalogen percentage, while GaAs showed increased etch rates with plasma composition in both chemistries. Etch rates of all materials increased substantially with increasing rf chuck power, but rapidly decreased with chamber pressure. Selectivities > 10 for GaAs and GaSb over AlGaAs were obtained in both chemistries. The etched surfaces of GaAs showed smooth morphology, which were somewhat better with IC1/Ar than with IBr/& discharge. Auger Electron Spectroscopy analysis revealed equi-rate of removal of group III and V components or the corresponding etch products, maintaining the stoichiometry of the etched surface

High-Density Plasma Etching of Group-III Nitride Films for Device Application

As III-V nitride device structures become more complicated and design rules shrink, well-controlled etch processes are necessary. Due to limited wet chemical etch results for the group-III nitrides, a significant amount of effort has been devoted to the development of dry etch processing. Dry etch development was initially focused on mesa structures where high etch rates, anisotropic profiles, smooth sidewalls, and equi-rate etching of dissimilar materials were required. For example, commercially available LEDs and laser facets for GaN-based laser diodes have been patterned using reactive ion etching (RIE). With the recent interest in high power, high temperature electronic devices, etch characteristics may also require smooth surface morphology, low plasma-induced damage, and selective etching of one layer over another. The principal criteria for any plasma etch process is its utility in the fabrication of a device. In this study, we will report plasma etch results for the group-III nitrides and their application to device structures

ECR etching of GaP, GaAs, InP, and InGaAs in Cl{sub 2}/Ar, Cl{sub 2}/N{sub 2}, BCl{sub 3}/Ar, and BCl{sub 3}/N{sub 2}

Electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) etching GaP, GaAs, InP, and InGaAs are reported as a function of percent chlorine-containing gas for Cl{sub 2}/Ar, Cl{sub 2}/N{sub 2}, BCl{sub 3}/Ar, and BCl{sub 3}N{sub 2} plasma chemistries. GaAs and GaP etch rates were faster than InP and InGaAs, independent of plasma chemistry due to the low volatility of the InCl{sub x} etch products. GaAs and GaP etch rates increased as %Cl{sub 2} was increased for Cl{sub 2}/Ar and Cl{sub 2}/N{sub 2} plasmas. The GaAs and GaP etch rates were much slower in BCl{sub 3}-based plasmas due to lower concentrations of reactive Cl, however enhanced etch rates were observed in BCl{sub 3}/N{sub 2} at 75% BCl{sub 3}. Smooth etched surfaces were obtained over a wide range of plasma chemistries

The Operation of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell using Hydrogen Produced from the Combined Methanol Reforming Process

A combined system with PEMFC and reformer is introduced and optimized for the real use of this kind of system in the future. The hydrogen source to operate the PEMFC system is methanol, which needs two parts of methanol reforming reaction and preferential oxidation (PROX) for the hydrogen fuel process in the combined operation PEMFC system. With the optimized methanol steam reforming condition, we tested PROX reactions in various operation temperature from 170 to 270oC to investigate CO concentration data in the reformed gases. Using these different CO concentration, PEMFC performances are achieved at the combined system. Pt/C and Ru promoted Pt/C were catalysts were used for the anode to compare the stability in CO contained gases. The alloy catalyst of PtRu/C shows higher performance and better resistance to CO than the Pt/C at even high CO amount of 200 ppm, indicating a promotion not only to the activity but also to the CO tolerance. Furthermore, in a system point of view, there is a fluctuation in the PEMFC operation due to the unstable fuel supply. Therefore, we also modified the methanol reforming by a scaled up reactor and pressurization to produce steady operation of PEMFC. The optimized system with the methanol reformer and PEMFC shows a stable performance for a long time, which is providing a valuable data for the PEMFC commercialization. © 2016, Korean Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.

Effect of Inert Gas Additive Species on Cl(2) High Density Plasma Etching of Compound Semiconductors: Part 1. GaAs and GaSb

The role of the inert gas additive (He, Ar, Xe) to C12 Inductively Coupled Plasmas for dry etching of GaAs and GaSb was examined through the effect on etch rate, surface roughness and near-surface stoichiometry. The etch rates for both materials go through a maximum with Clz 0/0 in each type of discharge (C12/'He, C12/Ar, C12/Xc), reflecting the need to have efficient ion-assisted resorption of the etch products. Etch yields initially increase strongly with source power as the chlorine neutral density increases, but decrease again at high powers as the etching becomes reactant-limited. The etched surfaces are generally smoother with Ax or Xe addition, and maintain their stoichiometry