Characteristics of AlGaN/GaN/AlGaN double heteroj unction HEMTs with an improved breakdown voltage

正We studied the performance of AlGaN/GaN double heterojunction high electron mobility transistors (DH-HEMTs) with an AlGaN buffer layer,which leads to a higher potential barrier at the backside of the twodimensional electron gas channel and better carrier confinement.This,remarkably,reduces the drain leakage current and improves the device breakdown voltage.The breakdown voltage of AlGaN/GaN double heterojunction HEMTs (~ 100 V) was significantly improved compared to that of conventional AlGaN/GaN HEMTs(~50 V) for the device with gate dimensions of 0.5 x 100μm and a gate-drain distance of 1μm.The DH-HEMTs also demonstrated a maximum output power of 7.78 W/mm,a maximum power-added efficiency of 62.3%and a linear gain of 23 dB at the drain supply voltage of 35 V at 4 GHz.     

槽栅MOSHEMT研制与特性分析

An A1GaN/GaN recessed-gate MOSHEMT was fabricated on a sapphire substrate. The device, which has a gate length of 1μm and a source-drain distance of 4μm, exhibits a maximum drain current density of 684mA/mrn at Vgs = 4V with an extrinsic transconductance of 219 mS/mm. This is 24.3% higher than the transconductance of conventional A1GaN/GaN HEMTs. The cut-off frequency and the maximum frequency of oscillation are 9.2 GHz and 14.1 GHz, respectively. Furthermore, the gate leakage current is two orders of magnitude lower than for the conventional Schottky contact device.     

Impact of UV/ozone surface treatment on AIGaN/GaN HEMTs

Surface treatment plays an important role in the process of making high performance AlGaN/GaN HEMTs. A clean surface is critical for enhancing device performance and long-term reliability. By experimenting with different surface treatment methods, we find that using UV/ozone treatment significantly influences the electrical properties of Ohmic contacts and Schottky contacts. According to these experimental phenomena and Xray photoelectron spectroscopy surface analysis results, the effect of the UV/ozone treatment and the reason that it influences the Ohmic/Schottky contact characteristics of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs is investigated.     

高漏偏压下AlGaN/GaN HEMT噪声性能的研究

The advent of fully integrated GaN PA-LNA circuits makes it meaningful to investigate the noise performance under high drain bias. However, noise performance of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under high bias has not received worldwide attention in theoretical studies due to its complicated mechanisms. The noise value is moderately higher and its rate of increase is fast with increasing high voltage. In this paper, several possible mechanisms are proposed to be responsible for it. Impact ionization under high electric field incurs great fluctuation of carrier density, which increases the drain diffusion noise. Besides, higher gate leakage current related shot noise and a more severe self-heating effect are also contributors to the noise increase at high bias. Analysis from macroscopic and microscopic perspectives can help us to design new device structures to improve noise performance of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under high bias.     

A Ka-band 22 dBm GaN amplifier MMIC

A Ka-band GaN amplifier MMIC has been designed in CPW technology,and fabricated with a domestic GaN epitaxial wafer and process.This is,to the best of our knowledge,the first demonstration of domestic Kaband GaN amplifier MMICs.The single stage CPW MMIC utilizes an AlGaN/GaN HEMT with a gate-length of 0.25μm and a gate-width of 2×75μm.Under V_ds=10 V,continuous-wave operating conditions,the amplifier has a 1.5 GHz operating bandwidth.It exhibits a linear gain of 6.3 dB,a maximum output power of 22 dBm and a peak PAE of 9.5%at 26.5 GHz.The output power density of the AlGaN/GaN HEMT in the MMIC reaches 1 W/mm at Ka-band under the condition of V_ds=10 V.     

AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with 0.2μm V-gate recesses for X-band application

正AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with 0.2μm V-gate recesses were developed.The 0.2μm recess lengths were shrunk from the 0.6μm designed gate footprint length after isotropic SiN deposition and anisotropic recessed gate dry etching.The AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with 0.2μm V-gate recesses on sapphire substrates exhibited a current gain cutoff frequency f_t of 35 GHz and a maximum frequency of oscillation f_(max) of 60 GHz.At 10 GHz frequency and 20 V drain bias,the V-gate recess devices exhibited an output power density of 4.44 W/mm with the associated power added efficiency as high as 49%.     

InGaN背势垒AlGaN/GaN HEMT中的电流崩塌研究

Current collapses were studied,which were observed in AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors(HEMTs) with and without InGaN back barrier(BB) as a result of short-term bias stress.More serious drain current collapses were observed in InGaN BB AlGaN/GaN HEMTs compared with the traditional HEMTs.The results indicate that the defects and surface states induced by the InGaN BB layer may enhance the current collapse.The surface states may be the primary mechanism of the origination of current collapse in AlGaN/GaN HEMTs for short-term direct current stress.     

Progress in Group Ⅲ nitride semiconductor electronic devices

Recently there has been a rapid domestic development in groupⅢnitride semiconductor electronic materials and devices.This paper reviews the important progress in GaN-based wide bandgap microelectronic materials and devices in the Key Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China,which focuses on the research of the fundamental physical mechanisms of group III nitride semiconductor electronic materials and devices with the aim to enhance the crystal quality and electric performance of GaN-based electronic materials, develop new GaN heterostructures,and eventually achieve high performance GaN microwave power devices.Some remarkable progresses achieved in the program will be introduced,including those in GaN high electron mobility transistors(HEMTs) and metal-oxide-semiconductor high electron mobility transistors(MOSHEMTs) with novel high-k gate insulators,and material growth,defect analysis and material properties of InAlN/GaN heterostructures and HEMT fabrication,and quantum transport and spintronic properties of GaN-based heterostructures,and highelectric -field electron transport properties of GaN material and GaN Gunn devices used in terahertz sources.     

Fabrication and characterization of high performance AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on sapphire with silicon nitride passivation

AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors(HEMTs)with high performance were fabricated and characterized.A variety of techniques were used to improve device performance,such as AlN interlayer,silicon nitride passivation,high aspect ratio T-shaped gate,low resistance ohmic contact and short drain-source distance. DC and RF performances of as-fabricated HEMTs were characterized by utilizing a semiconductor characterization system and a vector network analyzer,respectively.As-fabricated devices exhibited a maximum drain current density of 1.41 A/mm and a maximum peak extrinsic transconductance of 317 mS/mm.The obtained current density is larger than those reported in the literature to date,implemented with a domestic wafer and processes.Furthermore, a unity current gain cut-off frequency of 74.3 GHz and a maximum oscillation frequency of 112.4 GHz were obtained on a device with an 80 nm gate length.     

Impact of barrier thickness on gate capacitance—Modeling and Comparative analysis of GaN based MOSHEMTs

A mathematical model is developed predicting the behavior of gate capacitance with the nanoscale variation of barrier thickness in AlN/GaN MOSHEMT and its effect on gate capacitances of AlInN/GaN and AlGaN/GaN MOSHEMTs through TCAD simulations is compared analytically. Al N/GaN and AlInN/GaN MOSHEMTs have an advantage of a significant decrease in gate capacitance up to 108 fF/ m2 with an increase in barrier thickness up to 10 nm as compared to conventional AlGaN/GaN MOSHEMT. This decrease in gate capacitance leads to improved RF performance and hence reduced propagation delay.     

X-Band GaN Power HEMTs with Power Density of 2.23W/mm Grown on Sapphire by MOCVD

The growth,fabrication,and characterization of 0.2μm gate-length AlGaN/GaN HEMTs, with a high mobility GaN thin layer as a channel,grown on (0001) sapphire substrates by MOCVD,are described.The unintentionally doped 2.5μm thick GaN epilayers grown with the same conditions as the GaN channel have a room temperature electron mobility of 741cm2/(V·s) at an electron concentration of 1.52e16cm-3.The resistivity of the thick GaN buffer layer is greater than 1e8Ω·cm at room temperature.The 50mm HEMT wafers grown on sapphire substrates show an average sheet resistance of 440.9Ω/□ with uniformity better than 96%.Devices of 0.2μm×40μm gate periphery exhibit a maximum extrinsic transconductance of 250mS/mm and a current gain cutoff frequency of 77GHz.The AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with 0.8mm gate width display a total output power of 1.78W (2.23W/mm) and a linear gain of 13.3dB at 8GHz.The power devices also show a saturated current density as high as 1.07A/mm at a gate bias of 0.5V.     

钠β－氧化铝作为AlGaN/GaN MISHEMT栅绝缘层及表面钝化层时的器件性能

An AlGaN/GaN metal-insulator-semiconductor high-electron-mobility transistor(MISHEMT), with sodium beta-alumina(SBA) for both gate insulation and surface passivation, was investigated and compared with a conventional metal-semiconductor high-electron-mobility transistor(MESHEMT). The measured gate leakage current of the MISHEMT was reduced by approximately one order of magnitude as compared with that of the conventional MESHEMT. The saturation drain current of the AlGaN/GaN MISHEMT reached 830 mA/mm, which was about 43% higher than that of a conventional MESHEMT. The peak extrinsic transconductance of the MISHEMT was 103 mS/mm, which was similarly higher than that of the MESHEMT. The results suggested that the SBA thin film is an effective candidate gate dielectric for AlGaN/GaN MISHEMTs.     

PI/Cr钝化对提高AlGaN/GaN HEMTs 击穿电压的研究

A novel AlGaN/GaN high electric mobility transistor（HEMT） with polyimide（PI）/chromium（Cr） as thepassivationlayerisproposedforenhancingbreakdownvoltageanditsDCperformanceisalsoinvestigated.The Cr nanoparticles firstly introduced in PI thin films by the co-evaporation can be used to increase the permittivity of PI film. The high-permittivity PI/Cr passivation acting as field plate can suppress the fringing electric field peak at the drain-side edge of the gate electrode. This mechanism is demonstrated in accord with measured results. The experimental results show that in comparison with the AlGaN/GaN HEMTs without passivation, the breakdown voltage of HEMTs with the PI/Cr composite thin films can be significantly improved, from 122 to 248 V.     

RF-MBE Grown AlGaN/GaN HEMT Structure with High Al Content

A Si doped AlGaN/GaN HEMT structure with high Al content (x=43%) in the barrier layer is grown on sapphire substrate by RF-MBE.The structural and electrical properties of the heterostructure are investigated by the triple axis Xray diffraction and Van der PauwHall measurement,respectively.The observed prominent Bragg peaks of the GaN and AlGaN and the Hall results show that the structure is of high quality with smooth interface.The high 2DEG mobility in excess of 1260cm2／（V·s） is achieved with an electron density of 1.429e13cm－2 at 297K,corresponding to a sheet-densitymobility product of 1.8e16V－1·s－1.Devices based on the structure are fabricated and characterized.Better DC characteristics,maximum drain current of 1.0A/mm and extrinsic transconductance of 218mS/mm are obtained when compared with HEMTs fabricated using structures with lower Al mole fraction in the AlGaN barrier layer.The results suggest that the high Al content in the AlGaN barrier layer is promising in improving material electrical properties and device performance.     

Correlation of in-situ reflectance spectra and resistivity of GaN/Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> interfacial layer in metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

The correlation between the resistivity of an undoped GaN/Al₂O₃ interfacial layer and in-situ reflectance spectrum in metalorganic chemical vapor deposition and the mechanism of this correlation were investigated. The first minimum reflectance during the initial high-temperature GaN growth was found to be a good indicator of the resistivity of the GaN buffer. The background electron concentration and mobility were both higher in the samples with higher indicative reflectance at that point. The resistivity of the GaN buffer layer was predominantly determined by an ∼0.25-μm-thick layer near the GaN/Al₂O₃ interface. Atomic force microscope (AFM) and high-resolution x-ray diffraction (HRXRD) results showed that the samples with higher indicative reflectance had smaller sized but higher density nuclei before the high-temperature GaN growth and lower screw threading dislocation (TD) density in the initially grown GaN. The difference in the background electron concentration and mobility of the interfacial layer was related to the relatively higher concentration of the O and Al diffused from Al₂O₃, which is also dependent on the size and density of the nuclei. These differences were found not to affect the structural and electrical properties or the surface morphology of AlGaN/GaN high electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs, except for the buffer conduction) when the GaN buffer is thick enough (e.g., ∼2.5 μm).     

fmax大于100GHz的AlGaN背势垒结构InAlN-GaN HEMT研究

We report the DC and RF performance of InAlN/GaN high-electron mobility transistors with AlGaN back barrier grown on SiC substrates.These presented results confirm the high performance that is reachable by InAlN-based technology.The InAlN/GaN HEMT sample showed a high 2DEG mobility of 1550 cm²/（V·s） at a 2DEG density of 1.7×10¹³ cm^-2.DC and RF measurements were performed on the unpassivated device with 0.2μm "T" gate.The maximum drain current density at V_GS = 2 V is close to 1.05 A/mm in a reproducible way. The reduction in gate leakage current helps to increase the frequency performance of AIGaN back barrier devices. The power gain cut-off frequency of a transistor with an AIGaN back barrier is 105 GHz,which is much higher than that of the device without an AIGaN back barrier at the same gate length.These results indicate InAlN/GaN HEMT is a promising candidate for millimeter-wave application.     

Field plated 0.15μm GaN HEMTs for millimeter-wave application

SiN dielectrically-defined 0.15μm field plated GaN HEMTs for millimeter-wave application have been presented.The AlGaN/GaN hetero-structure epitaxial material for HEMTs fabrication was grown on a 3-inch SiC substrate with an Fe doped GaN buffer layer by metal-organic chemical deposition.Electron beam lithography was used to define both the gate footprint and the cap of the gate with an integrated field plate.Gate recessing was performed to control the threshold voltage of the devices.The fabricated GaN HEMTs exhibited a unit current gain cut-off frequency of 39 GHz and a maximum frequency of oscillation of 63 GHz.Load-pull measurements carried out at 35 GHz showed a power density of 4 W/mm with associated power gain and power added efficiency of 5.3 dB and 35%,respectively,for a 0.15 mm gate width device operated at a 24 V drain bias.The developed 0.15μm gate length GaN HEMT technology is suitable for Ka band applications and is ready for millimeter-wave power MMICs development.     

欧姆接触金属退火对应力AlGaN/GaN异质结构中电子迁移率的影响

The influence of annealed ohmic contact metals on the electron mobility of a two dimensional electron gas （2DEG） is investigated on ungated AlGaN/GaN heterostructures and AlGaN/GaN heterostructure field effect transistors （AlGaN/GaN HFETs）. Current-voltage （I-V） characteristics for ungated AlGaN/GaN heterostructures and capacitance-voltage （C-V） characteristics for AlGaN/GaN HFETs are obtained, and the electron mobility for the ungated AlGaN/GaN heterostructure is calculated. It is found that the electron mobility of the 2DEG for the ungated AlGaN/GaN heterostructure is decreased by more than 50% compared with the electron mobility of Hall measurements. We propose that defects are introduced into the AlGaN barrier layer and the strain of the AlGaN barrier layer is changed during the annealing process of the source and drain, causing the decrease in the electron mobility.     

A 4.69-W/mm output power density InAlN/GaN HEMT grown on sapphire substrate

We report high performance InAlN/GaN HEMTs grown on sapphire substrates.The lattice-matched InAlN/GaN HEMT sample showed a high 2DEG mobility of 1210 cm²/（V·s） under a sheet density of 2.6×10¹³ cm^-2.Large signal load-pull measurements for a（2×100μm）×0.25μm device have been conducted with a drain voltage of 24 V at 10 GHz.The presented results confirm the high performances reachable by InAlN-based technology with an output power density of 4.69 W/mm,a linear gain of 11.8 dB and a peak power-added efficiency of 48%.This is the first report of high performance InAlN/GaN HEMTs in mainland China.     

AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors with selective area grown p-GaN gates

We report a selective area growth (SAG) method to define the p-GaN gate of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition. Compared with Schottky gate HEMTs, the SAG p-GaN gate HEMTs show more positive threshold voltage (V_th) and better gate control ability. The influence of Cp₂Mg flux of SAG p-GaN gate on the AlGaN/GaN HEMTs has also been studied. With the increasing Cp₂Mg from 0.16 μmol/min to 0.20 μmol/min, the V_th raises from -67 V to -37 V. The maximum transconductance of the SAG HEMT at a drain voltage of 10 V is 113.9 mS/mm while that value of the Schottky HEMT is 51.6 mS/mm. The SAG method paves a promising way for achieving p-GaN gate normally-off AlGaN/GaN HEMTs without dry etching damage.