Dopant Effects on Defects in GaN Films Grown by Metal-Organic Chemical Vapour Deposition

The effects of dopants on the defects of GaN films were investigated by using different methods, such as wet,etching of pits, x-ray dit~action and photoluminescence (PL). Three kinds of the samples were prepared with different dopants, that is, nominally undoped, Si-doped and Mg-doped GaN films. It was found that the lowest density of the, etched pit was existed in the nominally undoped GaN, while the highest in the Mg-doped sample.The effects of the dopants on the, etching pits were discussed.     

Surface Properties of Unintentionally Doped GaN Film and Its Contact Behaviour with Ni／Cr／Au Compound Metals

The surface properties of GaN films grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy were investigated by using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger electron spectroscopy, while the depth profile was analysed by the Ar ion sputtering method.The contaminants carbon and silicon are chiefly adsorbed onto the surface while oxygen and aluminium diffuse into the bulk to distribute in a certain depth. The mixture oxides is roughly 0.1μm in thickness. Based on the analytical results of XPS of the GaN films, the Ni/Cr/Au interdigital metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) structure has been fabricated. It has been found that the contact behaviour of the Ni/Cr/Au/undoped GaN exhibits a linear I-V characteristic under dark and 362-um light excitation without annealing treatment. The lower resistance of the MSM structure has also been observed.     

The exciton-longitudinal-optical-phonon coupling in InGaN/GaN single quantum wells with various cap layer thicknesses

This paper studies the exciton-longitudinal-optical-phonon coupling in InGaN/GaN single quantum wells with various cap layer thicknesses by low temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements.With increasing cap layer thickness,the PL peak energy shifts to lower energy and the coupling strength between the exciton and longitudinal-optical (LO) phonon,described by Huang-Rhys factor,increases remarkably due to an enhancement of the internal electric field.With increasing excitation intensity,the zero-phonon peak shows a blueshift and the Huang-Rhys factor decreases.These results reveal that there is a large built-in electric field in the well layer and the exciton-LO-phonon coupling is strongly affected by the thickness of the cap layer.     

Growth of Strain Free GaN Layers on （0001） Oriented Sapphire by Using Quasi-Porous GaN Template

We report the reduced-strain gallium-nitride （GaN） epitaxial growth on （0001） oriented sapphire by using quasiporous GaN template. A GaN film in thickness of about 1 μm was initially grown on a （0001） sapphire substrate by molecular beam epitaxy. Then it was dealt by putting into 45% NaOH solution at 100℃ for lOmin. By this process a quasi-porous GaN film was formed. An epitaxial GaN layer was grown on the porous GaN layer at 1050℃ in the hydride vapour phase epitaxy reactor. The epitaxial layer grown on the porous GaN is found to have no cracks on the surface. That is much improved from many cracks on the surface of the GaN epitaxial layer grown on the sapphire as the same as on GaN buffer directly.     

Optical and Electronic Properties of InGaN／GaN Multi—Quantum—Wells Near—Ultraviolet Lighting—Emitting—Diodes Grown by Low—Pressure Metalorganic Vapour Phase Epitaxy

The near-ultraviolet lighting-emitting-diodes (UV-LEDs) with the InGaN/GaN multi-quantum-well (MQW) structure were grown by low-pressure metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy. The double crystal x-ray diffraction revealed a distinct second-order satellite peak. The near-ultraviolet InGaN/GaN MQW LEDs have been successfully fabricated to emit at 401.2nm with narrow FWHM of 14.3nm and the forward voltage of 3.6 V at 20 mA injection current at room temperature. With increasing forward current from l 0 mA to 50 mA, the redshift of the peak wavelength was observed due to the band-gap narrowing caused by heat generation.     

Comparative Characterization of InGaN/GaN Multiple Quantum Wells by Transmission Electron Microscopy, X-Ray Diffraction and Rutherford Backscattering

The composition, elastic strain and structural defects of InCaN/CaN multiple quantum wells （MQWs） are comparatively investigated by using x-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy and Rutherford backscattering/channelling. The InGaN well layers are fully strained on CaN, i.e. the degree of relaxation is zero. The multilayered structure has a clear defined periodic thickness and abrupt interfaces. The In composition is deduced by XRD simulation. We show how the periodic structure, the In composition, the strain status and the crystalline quality of the InGaN/GaN MQ, Ws can be determined and cross-checked by various techniques.     

p—Type Doping of GaN by Mg^＋ Implantation

Mg^ and Mg^ P^ were introduced into GaN by ion implantation.The structure and crystalline quality of the GaN samples were analysed by Rutherford backscattering and channelling spectormetry before(χmin=1.6%)and after implantation(χmin=4.1%),X-ray diffraction reveals the existence of implantation-induced damage in the case of post-implantation followed by rapid thermal annealing.The resistivtiy,average factor,carrier concentration and carrier mobility were measured by the Hall effect.The transformation from n-type to p-type for GaN was observed.     

High efficiency and enhanced ESD properties of UV LEDs by inserting p-GaN/p-AlGaN superlattice

Significantly improved electrostatic discharge(ESD)properties of InGaN/GaN-based UV light-emitting diode(LED)with inserting p-GaN/p-AlGaN superlattice(p-SLs)layers(instead of p-AlGaN single layer)between multiple quantum wells and Mg-doped GaN layer are reported.The pass yield of the LEDs increased from 73.53%to 93.81%under negative 2000 V ESD pulses.In addition,the light output power(LOP)and efficiency droop at high injection current were also improved.The mechanism of the enhanced ESD properties was then investigated.After excluding the effect of capacitance modulation,high-resolution X-ray diffraction(XRD)and atomic force microscope(AFM)measurements demonstrated that the dominant mechanism of the enhanced ESD properties is the material quality improved by p-SLs,which indicated less leakage paths,rather than the current spreading improved by p-SLs.     

The influence of AlN/GaN superlattice intermediate layer on the properties of GaN grown on Si（111） substrates

AlN/GaN superlattice buffer is inserted between GaN epitaxial layer and Si substrate before epitaxial growth of GaN layer. High-quality and crack-free GaN epitaxial layers can be obtained by inserting AlN/GaN superlattice buffer layer. The influence of AlN/GaN superlattice buffer layer on the properties of GaN films are investigated in this paper. One of the important roles of the superlattice is to release tensile strain between Si substrate and epilayer. Raman spectra show a substantial decrease of in-plane tensile strain in GaN layers by using AlN/GaN superlattice buffer layer. Moreover, TEM cross-sectional images show that the densities of both screw and edge dislocations are significantly reduced. The GaN films grown on Si with the superlattice buffer also have better surface morphology and optical properties.     

Effect of double AlN buffer layer on the qualities of GaN films grown by radio-frequency molecular beam epitaxy

This paper reports that the GaN thin films with Ga-polarity and high quality were grown by radio-frequency molecular beam epitaxy on sapphire （0001） substrate with a double A1N buffer layer. The buffer layer consists of a high-temperature （HT） A1N layer and a low-temperature （LT） A1N layer grown at 800℃ and 600℃, respectively. It is demonstrated that the HT-A1N layer can result in the growth of GaN epilayer in Ga-polarity and the LT-A1N layer is helpful for the improvement of the epilayer quality. It is observed that the carrier mobility of the GaN epilayer increases from 458 to 858cm^2/V.s at room temperature when the thickness of LT-A1N layer varies from 0 to 20nm. The full width at half maximum of x-ray rocking curves also demonstrates a substantial improvement in the quality of GaN epilavers by the utilization of LT-A1N layer.     

Structural and optical investigation of nonpolar a-plane GaN grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition on r-plane sapphire by neutron irradiation

Nonpolar (1120) a-plane GaN films are grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) on r-plane (1102) sapphire.The samples are irradiated with neutrons under a dose of 1 × 10 15 cm 2.The surface morphology,the crystal defects and the optical properties of the samples before and after irradiation are analysed using atomic force microscopy (AFM),high resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) and photoluminescence (PL).The AFM result shows deteriorated sample surface after the irradiation.Careful fitting of the XRD rocking curve is carried out to obtain the Lorentzian weight fraction.Broadening due to Lorentzian type is more obvious in the as-grown sample compared with that of the irradiated sample,indicating that more point defects appear in the irradiated sample.The variations of line width and intensity of the PL band edge emission peak are consistent with the XRD results.The activation energy decreases from 82.5 meV to 29.9 meV after irradiation by neutron.     

Influence of double A1N buffer layers on the qualities of GaN films prepared by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition

<正>In this paper we report that the GaN thin film is grown by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition on a sapphire (0001) substrate with double AlN buffer layers.The buffer layer consists of a low-temperature(LT) AlN layer and a high-temperature(HT) AlN layer that are grown at 600℃and 1000℃,respectively.It is observed that the thickness of the LT-AlN layer drastically influences the quality of GaN thin film,and that the optimized 4.25-min-LT-AlN layer minimizes the dislocation density of GaN thin film.The reason for the improved properties is discussed in this paper.     

Defects in GaN Films Grown on Si（111） Substrates by Metal-Organic Chemical Vapour Deposition

We report the transmission-electron microscopy study of the defects in wurtzitic GaN films grown on Si(111) substrates with AlN buffer layers by the metal-organic chemical vapour deposition method. The In0.1 Ga0.9N/GaN multiple quantum well (MQW) reduced the dislocation density by obstructing the mixed and screw dislocations passing through the MQW. No evident reduction of the edge dislocations density by the MQW was observed. It was found that dislocations with screw component can be located at the boundaries of sub-grains slightly in-plane misoriented.     

The influence of an SixNy interlayer on a GaN film grown on an Si（lll） substrate

<正>A method to drastically reduce dislocation density in a GaN film grown on an Si(111) substrate is newly developed. In this method,the Si_xN_y interlayer which is deposited on an A1N buffer layer in situ is introduced to grow the GaN film laterally.The crack-free GaN film with thickness over 1.7 micron is successfully grown on an Si(111) substrate. A synthesized GaN epilayer is characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD),atomic force microscope(AFM),and Raman spectrum.The test results show that the GaN crystal reveals a wurtzite structure with the(0001) crystal orientation and the full width at half maximum of the X-ray diffraction curve in the(0002) plane is as low as 403 arcsec for the GaN film grown on the Si substrate with an Si_xN_y interlayer.In addition,Raman scattering is used to study the stress in the sample.The results indicate that the Si_xN_y interlayer can more effectively accommodate the strain energy.So the dislocation density can be reduced drastically,and the crystal quality of GaN film can be greatly improved by introducing an Si_xN_y interlayer.     

Influence of AlN buffer layer thickness on structural properties of GaN epilayer grown on Si (111) substrate with AlGaN interlayer

We present the growth of GaN epilayer on Si (111) substrate with a single AlGaN interlayer sandwiched between the GaN epilayer and AlN buffer layer by using the metalorganic chemical vapour deposition. The influence of the AlN buffer layer thickness on structural properties of the GaN epilayer has been investigated by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, optical microscopy and high-resolution x-ray diffraction. It is found that an AlN buffer layer with the appropriate thickness plays an important role in increasing compressive strain and improving crystal quality during the growth of AlGaN interlayer, which can introduce a more compressive strain into the subsequent grown GaN layer, and reduce the crack density and threading dislocation density in GaN film.     

Comparative Study of Properties of ZnO／GaN／Al203 and ZnO／Al203 Films Grown by Low－Pressure Metal Organic Chemical Vapour Deposition

ZnO films were deposited by low-pressure metal organic chemical vapour deposition on epi-GaN/Al203 films and c-Al203 substrates. The structure and optical properties of the ZnO/GaN/Al203 and ZnO/Al203 films have been investigated to determine the differences between the two substrates. ZnO films on GaN/Al203 show very strong emission features associated with exciton transitions, just as ZnO films on Al2O3, while the crystalline structural qualities for ZnO films on GaN/Al2O3 are much better than those for ZnO films directly grown on Al203 substrates. Zn and O elements in the deposited ZnO/GaN/Al2O3 and ZnO/Al2O3 films are investigated and compared by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. According to the statistical results, the Zn/O ratio changes from Zn-rich for ZnO/Al2O3 films to O-rich for ZnO/GaN/Al2O3 films.     

GaN Films Grown on Si （111） Substrates Using a Composite Buffer with Low Temperature A1N Interlayer

A GaN interlayer between low temperature （LT） A1N and high temperature （PIT） A1N is introduced to combine HT AIN, LT A1N and composition-graded A1GaN as a novel buffer layer for GaN films grown on Si （111） substrates. The crystal quality, surface morphology and strain state of the GaN film with this new buffer are compared with those of GaN grown on a conventional buffer structure. By changing the thickness of LT A1N, the crystal quality is optimized and the crack-free GaN film is obtained. The in-plane strain in the GaN film can be changed from tensile to compressive strain with the increase in LT A1N thickness.     

Strain Effect on Photoluminescences from InGaN MQWs with Different Barriers Grown by MOCVD

InGaN/GaN MQWs, InGaN/AlGaN MQWs and InGaN/AlInGaN MQWs are grown on （0001） sapphire substrates by MOCVD. Membrane samples are fabricated by laser lift-off technology. The photoluminescence spec-ra of membranes show a blue shift of peak positions in InGaN/GaN MQWs, a red shift of peak positions in InGaN/AlGaN MQWs and no shift of peak positions in InGaN/AIlnGaN MQWs from those of samples with substrates. Different changes in Raman scattering spectra and HR-XRD （0002） profile of InGaN/AlInGaN MQWs, from those of InGaN/GaN MQWs and InGaN/AlGaN MQWs, are observed. The fact that the strain changes differently among InGaN MQWs with different barriers is confirmed. The AIlnGaN barrier could adjust the residual stress for the least strain-induced electric field in InGaN/AIlnGaN quantum wells.     

Performance Improvement of GaN Based Schottky Barrier Ultraviolet Photodetector by Adding a Thin A1GaN Window Layer

We propose a new structure of GaN based Schottky barrier ultraviolet photodetector, in which a thin n-type A1GaN window layer is added on the conventional n^--GaN/n^＋-GaN device structure. The performance of the Schottky barrier ultraviolet photodetector is found to be improved by the new structure. The simulation result shows that the new structure can reduce the negative effect of surface states on the performance of Schottky barrier GaN photodetectors, improving the quantum efficiency and decreasing the dark current. The investigations suggest that the new photodetector can exhibit a better responsivity by choosing a suitably high carrier concentration and thin thickness for the A1GaN window layer.     

The effect of single A1GaN interlayer on the structural properties of GaN epilayers grown on Si （111） substrates

High-quality and nearly crack-free GaN epitaxial layer was obtained by inserting a single AlGaN interlayer between GaN epilayer and high-temperature AlN buffer layer on Si (111) substrate by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. This paper investigates the effect of AlGaN interlayer on the structural properties of the resulting GaN epilayer. It confirms from the optical microscopy and Raman scattering spectroscopy that the AlGaN interlayer has a remarkable effect on introducing relative compressive strain to the top GaN layer and preventing the formation of cracks. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy analysis reveal that a significant reduction in both screw and edge threading dislocations is achieved in GaN epilayer by the insertion of AlGaN interlayer. The process of threading dislocation reduction in both AlGaN interlayer and GaN epilayer is demonstrated.