Preliminary reliability assessment and failure physical analysis on AlGaN/GaN HEMTs COTS

GaN based FETs have demonstrated high microwave performance since several years, and exhibit attractive potential for microwave power source in electronic warfare and military radar application, and also for civilian telecommunication applications like wireless basestations, Wi-Max, Wi-Fi as well. Up to now, the main challenge remaining for this technology is the proof of good reliability. The Information Warfare Technology Center (CELAR) launched a GaN COTS assessment campaign in order to achieve a state of the art on this topic. In this paper, we presented and discussed the first results of a life test evaluation on HFET GaN/AlGaN structure on silicon substrate and the first results of investigations by physical analysis on a failed device. These preliminary reliability investigations show all the importance of reliability tests conditions applied in order to compare reliability results and also, the benefits of a screening to obtain representative technology quality of the batch of sample before stress. Our investigations on failure analysis by STEM around the gate area of a failed device show defects which could be responsible of a degradation of the Schottky gate.     

The role of surface barrier oxidation on AlGaN/GaN HEMTs reliability

Reliability of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs processed with different surface oxidation levels was studied using electrical and optical methods. It was found that HEMTs with more surface oxide content are more susceptible to degradation in terms of gate leakage and trapping characteristics, although this oxide layer initially passivates surface traps. In the degraded devices, trap level with activation energy of 0.45–0.47 eV was observed and attributed to surface related traps. This indicates that oxygen may play a crucial role for AlGaN/GaN HEMT reliability.     

Effect of the post-gate annealing on the gate reliability of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs

In this paper,we investigated the effect of post-gate annealing (PGA) on reverse gate leakage and the reverse bias reli-ability of Al0.23Ga0.77N/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs).We found that the Poole-Frenkel (PF) emission is domin-ant in the reverse gate leakage current at the low reverse bias region (Vth ＜ VG ＜ 0 V) for the unannealed and annealed HEMTs.The emission barrier height of HEMT is increased from 0.139 to 0.256 eV after the PGA process,which results in a reduction of the reverse leakage current by more than one order.Besides,the reverse step stress was conducted to study the gate reliabil-ity of both HEMTs.After the stress,the unannealed HEMT shows a higher reverse leakage current due to the permanent dam-age of the Schottky gate.In contrast,the annealed HEMT shows a little change in reverse leakage current.This indicates that the PGA can reduce the reverse gate leakage and improve the gate reliability.     

Enhancement-mode AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on silicon substrate

High-performance enhancement-mode AlGaN/GaN HEMTs (E-HEMTs) were demonstrated with samples grown on a low-cost silicon substrate for the first time. The fabrication process is based on a fluoride-based plasma treatment of the gate region and postgate annealing at 450 /spl deg/C. The fabricated E-HEMTs have nearly the same peak transconductance (G/sub m/) and cutoff frequencies as the conventional depletion-mode HEMTs fabricated on the same wafer, suggesting little mobility degradation caused by the plasma treatment.     

Transient pulsed analysis on GaN HEMTs at cryogenic temperatures

A pulsed measurement of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) current-voltage (I-V) output characteristics from 100 to 300 K temperatures has been systematically investigated, and a significant kink is clearly observed, which is more severe at cryogenic temperatures. By comparing the pulsed and dc I-V curves, the kink effect is more significant in the pulsed mode evaluation, which indicates a time constant related mechanism involved in the carrier transport. Moreover, a weak impact ionization by monitoring the gate current in the on-state of device has also been observed, and it is more significant at cryogenic temperatures.     

Comparison of GaN HEMTs on Diamond and SiC Substrates

The performance of AlGaN/GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) on diamond and SiC substrates is examined. We demonstrate GaN-on-diamond transistors with periphery WG = 250 mum, exhibiting ft = 27.4 GHz and yielding a power density of 2.79 W/mm at 10 GHz. Additionally, the temperature rise in similar devices on diamond and SiC substrates is reported. To the best of our knowledge, these represent the highest frequency of operation and first-reported thermal and X -band power measurements of GaN-on-diamond HEMTs.     

GaN高电子迁移率晶体管高频噪声特性的研究

基于FUKUI噪声模型,分析了GaN高电子迁移率晶体管(HEMT)器件的高频噪声特性,结果表明,由于GaN HEMT具有更高的临界电场和更大的电子饱和速度,与第2代半导体器件(GaAs HEMT等)相比具有更优越的噪声性能.对近10多年来国内外在GaN HEMT低噪声器件及其低噪声功率放大器单片集成电路(MMIC)方面的研究进行了综述,并分析了GaN HEMT在低噪声应用领域目前存在的主要问题及其发展趋势.     

应力对GaN HEMT器件电流崩塌的影响

电流崩塌是目前GaN HEMT微波功率器件中最严重的问题之一,国内外都有研究,但尚无统一结论。通过实验,研究了GaN HEMT器件电流崩塌现象。研究表明,不同电应力条件下,导致漏电流崩塌和最大跨导下降的物理机制不同,在大电场应力下,主要物理机制是栅隧穿电子填充表面态;而在热电子应力下,是沟道热电子填充界面态。     

蓝宝石衬底AlGaN/GaN共栅共源微波HEMTs器件

报道了蓝宝石衬底AlGaN/GaN共栅共源器件的制备与特性.该器件包括栅长为0.8μm共源器件与栅长为1μm的共栅器件.实验表明,共栅器件的第二栅压会显著影响器件饱和电流与跨导特性,从而控制功率增益.与共源器件相比,共栅共源器件表现出稍低的 f T、较低的反馈、显著增加的功率资用增益及较高的端口阻抗.     

蓝宝石衬底AlGaN/GaN共栅共源微波HEMTs器件

报道了蓝宝石衬底AlGaN/GaN共栅共源器件的制备与特性.该器件包括栅长为0.8μm共源器件与栅长为1μm的共栅器件.实验表明,共栅器件的第二栅压会显著影响器件饱和电流与跨导特性,从而控制功率增益.与共源器件相比,共栅共源器件表现出稍低的fT、较低的反馈、显著增加的功率资用增益及较高的端口阻抗.     

基于GaN HEMT器件的P波段小型化40 W发射模块

氮化镓高电子迁移率晶体管(GaN HEMT)器件具有高功率和功率密度、高导热率、高击穿场强、宽工作频带等特点,适合小型化、宽频带、大功率应用.基于GaN功率器件的特点研制了P波段宽带小型化40 W发射模块.通过负载牵引技术对GaN HEMT器件进行了大信号参数的提取,运用ADS软件进行了匹配电路的设计,对功率放大器的性能指标进行了优化,并基于LTC4440和nMOS器件设计了高压脉冲调制电路.研制结果表明,该模块在400 MHz工作带宽内(相对带宽100％)的输出功率为46.6 dBm (45.7 W),功率增益为36.6 dB,功率附加效率(PAE)为40.4％,杂波抑制为65.7 dBc,脉冲项降为0.4 dB,脉冲上升时间为75 ns,脉冲下降时间为50 ns,模块尺寸为50 mm×40 mm×20 mm.     

AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on (111) silicon substrates

AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on silicon substrates have been fabricated and their static and small-signal RF characteristics investigated. The AlGaN/GaN material structures were grown on (111) p-Si by LP-MOVPE. Devices exhibit a saturation current of 0.91 A/mm, a good pinchoff and a peak extrinsic transconductance of 122 mS/mm. A unity current gain frequency of 12.5 GHz and f_max/f_T=0.83 were obtained. The highest saturation current reported so far, static output characteristics of up to 20 V and breakdown voltage at pinchoff higher than 40 V demonstrate that the devices are capable of handling ~16 W/mm static heat dissipation     

AlGaN/GaN HEMT器件工艺的研究进展

首先论述了Al GaN/GaN高电子迁移率晶体管(HEMT)在微波大功率领域的应用优势和潜力;其次,介绍并分析了影响Al GaN/GaN HEMT性能的主要参数,分析表明要提高Al-GaN/GaN HEMT的频率和功率性能,需改善寄生电阻、电容、栅长和击穿电压等参数。然后,着重从材料结构和器件工艺的角度阐述了近年来Al GaN/GaN HEMT的研究进展,详细归纳了目前主要的材料生长和器件制作工艺,可以看出基本的工艺思路是尽量提高材料二维电子气的浓度和材料对二维电子气的限制能力的同时减小器件的寄生电容和电阻,增强栅极对沟道的控制能力。另外,根据具体情况调节栅长及沟道电场。最后,简要探讨了Al GaN/GaN HEMT还存在的问题以及面临的挑战。     

基于AlGaN/GaN HEMT的源漏整体刻蚀欧姆接触结构

研究了源漏整体刻蚀欧姆接触结构对AlGaN/GaN高电子迁移率晶体管(HEMT)的欧姆接触电阻和金属电极表面形貌的影响.利用传输线模型(TLM)对样品的电学性能进行测试,使用原子力显微镜(AFM)对样品的表面形貌进行表征,通过透射电子显微镜(TEM)和X射线能谱仪(EDS)对样品的剖面微结构和界面反应进行表征与分析.实验结果显示,采用Ti/Al/Ni/Au(20 nm/120 nm/45 nm/55 nm)金属和源漏整体刻蚀欧姆接触结构,在合金温度870 c℃,升温20 s,退火50 s条件下,欧姆接触电阻最低为0.13 Ω·mm,方块电阻为363.14 Ω/□,比接触电阻率为4.54×10-7Ω·cm2,形成了良好的欧姆接触,降低了器件的导通电阻.     

AlGaN/GaN HEMT欧姆接触的研究进展

从欧姆接触形成的机理出发,介绍了在AlGaN/GaN HEMT中实现源和漏区欧姆接触的各种方法,如表面处理技术、金属化系统和重掺杂技术等.回顾了近年来这些方法的研究进展.     

High-power microwave GaN/AlGaN HEMTs on semi-insulating siliconcarbide substrates

Record performance of high-power GaN/Al_0.14-Ga_0.86 N high-electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) fabricated on semi-insulating (SI) 4H-SiC substrates is reported. Devices of 0.125-0.25 mm gate periphery show high CW power densities between 5.3 and 6.9 W/mm, with a typical power-added efficiency (PAE) of 35.4% and an associated gain of 9.2 dB at 10 GHz. High-electron mobility transistors with 1.5-mm gate widths (12×125 μm), measured on-wafer, exhibit a total output power of 3.9 W CW (2.6 W/mm) at 10 GHz with a PAE of 29% and an associated gain of 10 dB at the -2 dB compression point. A 3-mm HEMT, packaged with a hybrid matching circuit, demonstrated 9.1 W CW at 7.4 GHz with a PAE of 29.6% and a gain of 7.1 dB. These data represent the highest power density, total power, and associated gain demonstrated for a III-nitride HEMT under RF drive     

X波段AlGaN/GaN HEMTs Γ栅场板结构研究

基于SiC衬底成功研制X波段0.25 μm栅长带有r栅场板结构的AlGaN/GaN HEMT,设计场板(field plate)长度为0.4 μm,0.6μm,0.7μm,0.9μm.研究了r栅场板长度及不同漏偏压下对器件直流,小信号特性及大信号的影响.器件直流I-V及转移特性并不依赖场板长度变化,增加场板长度器件击穿电压提高可达108 V,器件截止频率及振荡频率下降,输出功率大幅度提高,结合器件小信号提参结果分析.8 GHz下,总栅宽1 mm,场板长度为0.9 μm的器件,连续波输出功率密度7.11 W/mm,功率附加效率(PAE)35.31%,相应线性增益10.25 dB.     

蓝宝石衬底AlGaNöGaN 功率HEM Ts 研制

基于蓝宝石衬底的高微波特性 Al Ga N/Ga N HEMTs功率器件 ,器件采用了新的欧姆接触和新型空气桥方案。测试表明 ,器件电流密度 0 .784A/mm,跨导 1 97m S/mm,关态击穿电压 >80 V,截止态漏电很小 ,栅宽 1 mm的器件的单位截止频率 ( f T)达到 2 0 GHz,最大振荡频率 ( fmax) 2 8GHz,2 GHz脉冲测试下 ,栅宽 0 .75 mm器件 ,功率增益1 1 .8d B,输出功率 3 1 .2 d Bm,功率密度 1 .75 W/mm。     

DC, RF, and microwave noise performances of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on sapphire substrates

High-performance AlGaN/GaN high electron-mobility transistors with 0.18-/spl mu/m gate length have been fabricated on a sapphire substrate. The devices exhibited an extrinsic transconductance of 212 mS/mm, a unity current gain cutoff frequency (f/sub T/) of 101 GHz, and a maximum oscillation frequency (f/sub MAX/) of 140 GHz. At V/sub ds/=4 V and I/sub ds/=39.4 mA/mm, the devices exhibited a minimum noise figure (NF/sub min/) of 0.48 dB and an associated gain (Ga) of 11.16 dB at 12 GHz. Also, at a fixed drain bias of 4 V with the drain current swept, the lowest NFmin of 0.48 dB at 12 GHz was obtained at I/sub ds/=40 mA/mm, and a peak G/sub a/ of 11.71 dB at 12 GHz was obtained at I/sub ds/=60 mA/mm. With the drain current held at 40 mA/mm and drain bias swept, the NF/sub min/,, increased almost linearly with the increase of drain bias. Meanwhile, the Ga values decreased linearly with the increase of drain bias. At a fixed bias condition (V/sub ds/=4 V and I/sub ds/=40 mA/mm), the NF/sub min/ values at 12 GHz increased from 0.32 dB at -55/spl deg/C to 2.78 dB at 200/spl deg/C. To our knowledge, these data represent the highest f/sub T/ and f/sub MAX/, and the best microwave noise performance of any GaN-based FETs on sapphire substrates ever reported.     

AlN阻挡层对AlGaN/GaNHEMT器件的影响

利用低压MOCVD技术在蓝宝石衬底上生长了AlGaN/GaN异质结和AlGaN/AlN/GaN异质结二维电子气材料,采用相同器件工艺制造出了AlGaN/GaN HEMT器件和AlGaN/AlN/GaN HEMT器件.通过对两种不同器件的比较和讨论,研究了AlN阻挡层的增加对AlGaN/GaN HEMT器件性能的影响.