基于60 nm T型栅fT & fmax为170 & 210 GHz 的InAlN/GaN HFETs 器件

基于蓝宝石衬底InAlN/GaN异质结材料研制具有高电流增益截止频率(fT)和最大振荡频率(fmax)的InAlN/GaN异质结场效应晶体管 (HFETs)。基于再生长n GaN欧姆接触工艺实现了器件尺寸的缩小,有效源漏间距(Lsd)缩小至600 nm。此外,采用自对准栅工艺制备60 nm T型栅。由于器件尺寸的缩小,在Vgs= 1 V下,器件最大饱和电流(Ids)达到1.89 A/mm,峰值跨导达到462 mS/mm。根据小信号测试结果,外推得到器件的fT和fmax分别为170 GHz和210 GHz,该频率特性为国内InAlN/GaN HFETs器件频率的最高值。     

AlGaN-GaN double-channel HEMTs

We present the design, fabrication, and characterization of AlGaN-GaN double-channel HEMTs. Two carrier channels are formed in an AlGaN-GaN-AlGaN-GaN multilayer structure grown on a sapphire substrate. Polarization field in the lower AlGaN layer fosters formation of a second carrier channel at the lower AlGaN-GaN interface, without creating any parasitic conduction path in the AlGaN barrier layer. Unambiguous double-channel behaviors are observed at both dc and RF. Bias dependent RF small-signal characterization and parameter extraction were performed. Gain compression at a high current level was attributed to electron velocity degradation induced by interface scattering. Dynamic IV measurement was carried out to analyze large-signal behaviors of the double-channel high-electron mobility transistors. It was found that current collapse mainly occurs in the channel closer to device surface, while the lower channel suffers minimal current collapse, suggesting that trapping/detrapping of surface states is mainly responsible for current collapse. This argument is supported by RF large-signal measurement results.     

基于再生长欧姆接触工艺的220 GHz InAlN/GaN 场效应晶体管

本文在蓝宝石衬底上研制了具有高电流增益截止频率(f_T)的InAlN/GaN异质结场效应晶体管 (HFETs)。基于MOCVD外延n -GaN欧姆接触工艺实现了器件尺寸的缩小,有效源漏间距(L_sd)缩小至600 nm。此外,采用自对准工艺制备了50 nm直栅。由于器件尺寸的缩小,V_gs= 1 V下器件最大饱和电流(I_ds)达到2.11 A/mm,峰值跨导达到609 mS/mm。小信号测试表明,器件f_T达到220 GHz、最大振荡频率(f_max)达到48 GHz。据我们所知,该f_T值是目前国内InAlN/GaN HFETs器件报道的最高结果。     

An accurate nonlinear MOSFET model for intermodulation distortion analysis

A compact charge-conservative nonlinear equivalent circuit model for metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors is comprehensively verified in terms of its ability to predict intermodulation distortion. The model is valid for the dc, small-signal, and large-signal simulation of high frequency circuits over a wide range of bias conditions and is globally fully continuous. Simulations made using the model, following parameter extraction, are validated by comparisons with experimental data. Using harmonic balance methods, intermodulation distortion for weak and large-signal two-tone tests and more realistic wide-band code-division-multiple-access signals is successfully predicted for a range of bias points.     

Self-heating in high-power AlGaN-GaN HFETs

We compare self-heating effects in AlGaN-GaN heterostructure field effect transistors (HFETs) grown on sapphire and SiC substrates. Heat dissipation strongly affects the device characteristics soon after the application of the source-drain voltage (in less than 10^-7 s). Our results show that in HFET's with the total epilayer thickness less than 1.5 μm, the thermal impedance, Θ is primarily determined by the substrate material and not by the material of the active layer. For our devices grown on 6H-SiC substrates, we measured Θ of approximately 2°C·mm/W, which was more than an order of magnitude smaller than Θ=25°C mm/W measured for similar AlGaN/GaN HFET's grown on sapphire. Our results demonstrate that AlGaN-GaN HFET's grown on SiC substrates combine advantages of superior electron transport properties in AlGaN/GaN heterostructures with excellent thermal properties of SiC, which should make these devices suitable for high-power electronic applications     

Cat-CVD SiN-passivated AlGaN-GaN HFETs with thin and high Al composition barrier Layers

The effect of SiN surface passivation by catalytic chemical vapor deposition (Cat-CVD) on Al/sub 0.4/Ga/sub 0.6/N-GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs) was investigated. The channel sheet resistance was reduced by the passivation due to an increase in electron density, and the device characteristics of the thin-barrier HFETs were significantly improved by the reduction of source and drain resistances. The AlGaN(8 nm)-AlN(1.3 nm)-GaN HFET device with a source/drain distance of 3 /spl mu/m and a gate length of 1 /spl mu/m had a maximum drain current density of 0.83 A/mm at a gate bias of +1.5 V and an extrinsic maximum transconductance of 403 mS/mm. These results indicate the substantial potential of Cat-CVD SiN-passivated AlGaN-GaN HFETs with thin and high Al composition barrier layers.     

Silicon Dioxide-Encapsulated High-Voltage AlGaN/GaN HFETs for Power-Switching Applications

In this letter, new approach in achieving high breakdown voltages in AlGaN/GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs) by suppressing surface flashover using solid encapsulation material is presented. Surface flashover in III-Nitride-based HFETs limits the operating voltages at levels well below breakdown voltages of GaN. This premature gate-drain breakdown can be suppressed by immersing devices in high-dielectric-strength liquids (e.g., Fluorinert); however, such a technique is not practical. In this letter, AlGaN/GaN HFETs encapsulated with PECVD-deposited SiO₂ films demonstrated breakdown voltage of 900 V, very similar to that of devices immersed in Fluorinert liquid. Simultaneously, low dynamic ON-resistance of 2.43 mOmega ldr cm² has been achieved, making the developed AlGaN/GaN HFETs practical high-voltage high-power switches for power-electronics applications.     

Low-frequency 1/f noise and persistent transients in AlGaN-GaN HFETs

Persistent photoresponse transients and low-frequency 1/f noise were measured in barrier-controlled devices such as AlGaN-GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs). The persistent transients and 1/f noise were observed in drain and gate currents. A model describing trapping in a barrier-controlled device introduced, and the appropriate transient evolution and the noise spectra developed. Excellent agreement was obtained between the experimental measurements and the predicted temporal response and noise spectra. Finally, the correlation between drain and gate 1/f noise was measured, confirming that the same noise source (fluctuation in surface potential) is responsible to both currents.     

一种紧凑的GaN高电子迁移率晶体管大信号模型拓扑

GaN高电子迁移率晶体管（HEMT）以其复杂的器件特性使其大信号建模变得十分困难,尽管EEHEMT、Angelov等模型结构曾经成功应用于GaAs HEMT/MESFET的大信号模型,但当它们被用于GaN HEMT建模时却不再准确和完备.面向GaN HEMT器件的大信号模型,本文提出了一种紧凑的模型拓扑,此模型拓扑综合了GaN HEMT器件的直流电压-电流（I-V）特性、非线性电容、寄生参数、栅延迟漏延迟与电流崩塌、自热效应以及噪声等特性.经验证此模型拓扑在仿真中具有很好的收敛性,适用于GaN HEMT器件的大信号模型的建立,满足GaN基微波电路设计对器件模型的需求.     

基于MOCVD再生长n+ GaN 欧姆接触工艺fT/fmax＞150/210 GHz的AlGaN/GaN HFETs器件研究

基于SiC衬底AlGaN/GaN异质结材料研制具有高电流增益截止频率(fT)和最大振荡频率(fmax)的AlGaN/GaN异质结场效应晶体管(HFETs).基于MOCVD外延n+ GaN 欧姆接触工艺实现了器件尺寸的缩小, 有效源漏间距(Lsd)缩小至600 nm.此外, 采用自对准工艺制备了60 nm T型栅.由于器件尺寸的缩小, 在Vgs=2 V下, 器件最大饱和电流(Ids)达到2.0 A/mm, 该值为AlGaN/GaN HFETs器件直流测试下的最高值, 器件峰值跨导达到608 mS/mm.小信号测试表明, 器件fT和fmax最高值分别达到152 GHz和219 GHz.     

Transient Thermal Analysis of GaN Heterojunction Transistors (HFETs) for High-Power Applications

Transient thermal analysis of GaN heterojunction field-effect transistors (HFETs) was carried out in this letter, with a hybrid nonlinear finite element method (FEM) employed, i.e., combining the element-by-element FEM with the preconditioned conjugated gradient technique. The maximum temperature of the HFETs, strongly depending on the input power density and the duration time of the pulsed heat source, was captured numerically. The effects of temperature-dependent thermal conductivities of the substrates on the maximum temperature were also examined and compared for different substrate materials, such as sapphire, silicon, and SiC     

边欧姆工艺对AlN/GaN 异质结场效应晶体管极化梯度库仑场散射的影响

Using the measured capacitance–voltage and current–voltage characteristics of the rectangular Al N/Ga N heterostructure field-effect transistors(HFETs) with the side-Ohmic contacts, it was found that the polarization Coulomb field scattering in the Al N/Ga N HFETs was greatly weakened after the side-Ohmic contact processing, however, it still could not be ignored. It was also found that, with side-Ohmic contacts, the polarization Coulomb field scattering was much stronger in Al N/Ga N HFETs than in Al Ga N/Al N/Ga N and In0:17Al0:83N/Al N/Ga N HFETs, which was attributed to the extremely thinner barrier layer and the stronger polarization of the Al N/Ga N heterostructure.     

SiC and GaN transistors - is there one winner for microwave power applications?

Wide bandgap semiconductors show promise for high-power microwave electronic devices. Primarily due to low breakdown voltage, it has not been possible to design and fabricate solid-state transistors that can yield radio-frequency (RF) output power on the order of hundreds to thousands of watts. This has severely limited their use in power applications. Recent improvements in the growth of wide bandgap semiconductor materials, such as SiC and the GaN-based alloys, provide the opportunity to now design and fabricate microwave transistors that demonstrate performance previously available only from microwave tubes. The most promising electronic devices for fabrication in wide bandgap semiconductors for these applications are metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MESFETs) fabricated from the 4H-SiC polytype and heterojunction field-effect transistors (HFETs) fabricated using the AlGaN/GaN heterojunction. These devices can provide RF output power on the order of 5-6 W/mm and 10-12 W/mm of gate periphery, respectively. 4H-SiC MESFETs should produce useful performance at least through X band and AlGaN/GaN HFETs should produce useful performance well into the millimeter-wave region, and potentially as high as 100 GHz.     

Power Stability of AlGaN/GaN HFETs at 20 W/mm in the Pinched-Off Operation Mode

High power-added efficiency (PAE) (ap74%) and rf-power (20 W/mm) operation of Schottky and insulated-gate AlGaN/GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs) is reported at 2 GHz. In the pinched-off mode of operation, the PAE increases from a value of 55% to 74% when the drain bias is changed from 35 to 60 V. While both the Schottky and the insulated HFETs show high powers and PAE values, only the insulated-gate devices are stable at 20-W/mm output powers during a 60-h continuous wave rf-stress test. Their power drop of less than 0.1 dB is much smaller than the 0.8-dB drop for identical geometry Schottky-gate HFETs. The superior stability of the insulated-gate HFETs is attributed to the low forward gate currents     

Gate leakage current in GaN-based mesa- and planar-type heterostructure field-effect transistors

The excessive gate leakage current of the planar- and mesa-type InAlN/GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs) is evaluated. It is found that the gate current of the mesa-type HFETs is higher than that of the planar devices, particularly at low biases. Analyses of the gate current considering different transport mechanisms yielded identical thermionic currents (i.e., an identical Schottky barrier height) but a significantly higher leakage component in the mesa-type HFETs than in the planar devices. This additional current component observed in the mesa-type devices shows a nearly ohmic behavior. Mapping by the electron-beam induced current technique confirms an enhanced current located under the expanded gate contact and on the part of the mesa-sidewall, where the gate contact is placed. Two-dimensional simulation of the device structure shows that considerable part of the gate leakage current flows through the GaN buffer layer. These results underline the importance of a proper design of the device structure and layout (i.e., the use of planar structure with device insulation prepared by ion implantation rather than by mesa technique), and of the preparation of the GaN buffer (it should be semi-insulating) in order to fabricate reliable, low leakage current GaN-based HFETs.     

GaN基HFET的新进展

回顾了氮化镓 ( Ga N)基异质结场效应晶体管 ( HFET)的发展 ,概述了它的直流和微波特性。制作氮化镓基 HFET可以采用不同的器件结构 ,不同的结构有各自的优点 ,对器件性能有很大影响。多数器件采用了其中两种比较成熟的结构 ,文中对这两种结构进行了讨论     

Nonlinearity and cross modulation in field-effect transistors

It is shown that present large-signal models are inadequate for cross modulation in field-effect transistors, but the cross-modulation performance can be accurately predicted from a power-series approximation to the measured l.f. transfer characteristic of the device. The cross modulation for typical field- effect transistors is essentially independent of frequency up to about 100 MHz. A large-signal h.f. model of the field-effect transistor is proposed for the prediction of cross modulation and related phenomena at very high frequencies. Computer predictions of cross modulation based on this model agree well with experimental measurements.     

Improved large-signal GaN HEMT model suitable for intermodulation distortion analysis

In this article, a complete empirical large-signal model of GaN high electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) is presented. The developed nonlinear model employs differentiable trigonometric function continuously to describe the drain-source current characteristic and its higher order derivatives, making itself suitable for the simulation of intermodulation distortion (IMD) in microwave circuits. Besides, an improved charge-conservative gate charge model is proposed to accurately trace the nonlinear gate-source and gate-drain capacitances. The model validity is demonstrated for different 0.25-µm gate-length GaN HEMTs. The simulation results of small-signal S-parameters, radio frequency (RF) large-signal power performances and two-tone IMD products show an excellent agreement with the measured data.     

AlGaN/GaN MIS-HFETs with f/sub T/ of 163 GHz using cat-CVD SiN gate-insulating and passivation Layers

Al/sub 0.4/Ga/sub 0.6/N/GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors (HFETs) with an AlGaN barrier thickness of 8 nm and a gate length (L/sub G/) of 0.06-0.2 /spl mu/m were fabricated on a sapphire substrate. We employed two novel techniques, which were thin, high-Al-composition AlGaN barrier layers and SiN gate-insulating, passivation layers formed by catalytic chemical vapor deposition, to enhance high-frequency device characteristics by suppressing the short channel effect. The HFETs with L/sub G/=0.06-0.2 /spl mu/m had a maximum drain current density of 1.17-1.24 A/mm at a gate bias of +1.0 V and a peak extrinsic transconductance of 305-417 mS/mm. The current-gain cutoff frequency (f/sub T/) was 163 GHz, which is the highest value to have been reported for GaN HFETs. The maximum oscillation frequency (f/sub max/) was also high, and its value derived from the maximum stable gain or unilateral gain was 192 or 163 GHz, respectively.     

A large-signal SOI MOSFET model including dynamic self-heatingbased on small-signal model parameters

A new technique for a large-signal SOI MOSFET model with self-heating is proposed, based on thermal and electrical parameters extracted by fitting a small-signal model to measured s-parameters. A thermal derivative approach is developed to calculate the thermal resistance when the isothermal dc drain conductance is extracted from small-signal fitting. The thermal resistance is used to convert the measured dc current-voltage (I-V) characteristics containing the self-heating effects to the isothermal I-V characteristics needed for the large-signal model. Large-signal pulse and sinusoidal input signals are used to verify the model by measurement, and shown to reproduce the observed large-signal behavior of the devices with great accuracy, especially when two or more thermal time constants are used