Insulated gate and surface passivation structures for GaN-based power transistors

Recent years have witnessed GaN-based devices delivering their promise of unprecedented power and frequency levels and demonstrating their capability as an able replacement for Si-based devices. High-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs), a key representative architecture of GaN-based devices, are well-suited for high-power and high frequency device applications, owing to highly desirable III-nitride physical properties. However, these devices are still hounded by issues not previously encountered in their more established Si- and GaAs-based devices counterparts. Metal–insulator–semiconductor (MIS) structures are usually employed with varying degrees of success in sidestepping the major problematic issues such as excessive leakage current and current instability. While different insulator materials have been applied to GaN-based transistors, the properties of insulator/III-N interfaces are still not fully understood. This is mainly due to the difficulty of characterizing insulator/AlGaN interfaces in a MIS HEMT because of the two resulting interfaces: insulator/AlGaN and AlGaN/GaN, making the potential modulation rather complicated. Although there have been many reports of low interface-trap densities in HEMT MIS capacitors, several papers have incorrectly evaluated their capacitance–voltage (C–V) characteristics. A HEMT MIS structure typically shows a 2-step C–V behavior. However, several groups reported C–V curves without the characteristic step at the forward bias regime, which is likely to the high-density states at the insulator/AlGaN interface impeding the potential control of the AlGaN surface by the gate bias. In this review paper, first we describe critical issues and problems including leakage current, current collapse and threshold voltage instability in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs. Then we present interface properties, focusing on interface states, of GaN MIS systems using oxides, nitrides and high-κ dielectrics. Next, the properties of a variety of AlGaN/GaN MIS structures as well as different characterization methods, including our own photo-assisted C–V technique, essential for understanding and developing successful surface passivation and interface control schemes, are given in the subsequent section. Finally we highlight the important progress in GaN MIS interfaces that have recently pushed the frontier of nitride-based device technology

Formation of GaN porous structures with improved structural controllability by photoassisted electrochemical etching

We aimed to develop a photoassisted electrochemical etching process for the formation of GaN porous structures. Pore linearity and depth controllability were strongly affected by the anode voltage. In addition, the use of light with an energy below the band gap played an important role in controlling the pore diameter. Spectro-electrochemical measurements revealed that the high electric field induced at the GaN/electrolyte interface caused a redshift of the photoabsorption edge. This specific phenomenon can be explained by a theoretical calculation based on the Franz-Keldysh effect. On the basis of the results of our experimental and theoretical analyze, we propose a formation model for GaN porous structures. We also note that the application of the Franz-Keldysh effect is useful in controlling the structural properties of GaN porous structures

Large photocurrent-response observed at Pt/InP Schottky interface formed on anodic porous structure

A photoelectric-conversion device-based on an InP porous structure utilizing the large surface area inside pores and the low reflectance on the porous surface-is proposed. The InP walls inside the pores are covered with thin platinum films that form a Schottky barrier yielding an electric field that separates photo carriers generated under illumination. The coverage of the platinum film and its optical reflectance depended largely on the surface morphology of the porous structure. Removal of the irregular top layer formed at the initial stage of the pore formation effectively improved the coverage of the platinum film, which showed a very low optical reflectance (i.e., below 3.2%). According to current-voltage measurements under illumination, the platinum/porous InP showed larger photocurrents and higher responsivity than those of a reference planar sample

Investigation on optical absorption properties of electrochemically formed porous InP using photoelectric conversion devices

We investigated the optical absorption properties of InP porous structures formed by the electrochemical process using photoelectric conversion (PC) devices formed on p-n junction substrates. The photocurrent measurements revealed that the current from PC devices changed in response to the incident light power and the thickness of the top layer on the p-n interface. Since the photocarriers contributing to the observed photocurrents are excited by the photons reaching the p-n interface through the top layer, the photocurrents give us information on the optical absorption properties of the top layer. The photocurrents observed on a porous device with a porous structure in the top layer were lower than that of a non-porous device, indicating that the absorption properties of InP were enhanced after the formation of porous structures. This phenomenon can be explained in terms of absorption coefficient, α, increased by the light scattering and the sub-bandgap absorption in the porous layer. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Formation of GaN-Porous Structures Using Photo-Assisted Electrochemical Process in Back-Side Illumination Mode

We investigated the structural features of gallium-nitride-porous structures formed using the photo-assisted electrochemical process in the back-side illumination (BSI) mode. The pore diameter and depth were strongly affected by the direction of illumination, where higher controllability was achieved compared with front-side illumination. The spectroscopic measurements revealed that illumination with photon energy below the bulk bandgap plays an important role in pore formation. We propose a formation model by considering the Franz-Keldysh effect that can consistently explain the obtained experimental data in which anodic etching occurs only at the pore tips under the high electric field induced in the depletion region

Correlation between Structural and Photoelectrochemical Properties of GaN Porous Nanostructures Formed by Photo-Assisted Electrochemical Etching

We investigated the correlation between structural and photoelectrochemical properties of GaN porous nanostructures formed by photo-assisted electrochemical etching. The porous nanostructures were formed during light irradiation of the top-surface of homo-epitaxial layers grown on freestanding GaN substrates. The pore depth, wall thickness, and surface morphology of porous nanostructures were strongly influenced by the way holes generated by the light irradiation were supplied. Such structural features influenced the optical properties of GaN porous nanostructures. The photoluminescence peaks measured on GaN porous nanostructures were shifted to higher energies because of the quantum confinement in the thin GaN walls between pores. Formation of porous nanostructure decreased the photoreflectance of the GaN surface, and the smallest reflectance was obtained from the porous sample having large pores on its surface after the ultrathin layer with small pores had been removed by surface-etching. The photoelectrochemical response measured on GaN porous nanostructures in a NaCl electrolyte were drastically enhanced by the unique features of those structures, such as low photoreflectance and large surface area. The largest photocurrents were obtained from the sample from which H3PO4 treatment had removed the ultrathin layer without thinning the pore walls

Interface trap states in Al2O3/AlGaN/GaN structure induced by inductively coupled plasma etching of AlGaN surfaces

We have investigated the effects of the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) etching of AlGaN surface on the resulting interface properties of the Al2O3/AlGaN/GaN structures. The experimentally measured capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics were compared with those calculated taking into account the interface states density at the Al2O3/AlGaN interface. As a complementary method, photoassisted C-V method utilizing photons with energies less than the bandgap of GaN was also used to probe the interface state density located near AlGaN midgap. It was found that the ICP etching of the AlGaN surface significantly increased the interface state density at the Al2O3/AlGaN interface. It is likely that ICP etching induced the interface roughness, disorder of chemical bonds and formation of various type of defect complexes including nitrogen-vacancy-related defects at the AlGaN surface, leading to poor C-V curve due to higher interface state density at the Al2O3/AlGaN interface

Calculating relaxation time distribution function from power spectrum based on inverse integral transformation method

A novel method is presented for obtaining the distribution function of relaxation times G(tau) from power spectrum 1/f(alpha) (1 <= alpha <= 2). It is derived using McWhorter model and its inverse Stieltjes transform. Unlike the pre-assumed conventional g(tau) distribution, the extracted G(tau) has a peak whose width increases as the slope of the power spectrum alpha decreases. The peak position determines the dominant time constant of the system. Our method is unique because the distribution function is directly extracted from the measured power spectrum. We then demonstrate the validity of this method in the analysis of noise in transistor

Reduced thermal resistance in AlGaN/GaN multi-mesa-channel high electron mobility transistors

Dramatic reduction of thermal resistance was achieved in AlGaN/GaN Multi-Mesa-Channel (MMC) high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) on sapphire substrates. Compared with the conventional planar device, the MMC HEMT exhibits much less negative slope of the I-D-V-DS curves at high V-DS regime, indicating less self-heating. Using a method proposed by Menozzi and co-workers, we obtained a thermal resistance of 4.8 K-mm/W at ambient temperature of similar to 350K and power dissipation of similar to 9W/mm. This value compares well to 4.1 K-mm/W, which is the thermal resistance of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on expensive single crystal diamond substrates and the lowest reported value in literature