Thermal Stability of Nitride-Based Diffusion Barriers for Ohmic Contacts to <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-GaN

The use of TaN, TiN, and ZrN diffusion barriers for Ti/Al-based contacts on n-GaN (n ∼ 3 × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³) is reported. The annealing temperature (600–1,000°C) dependence of the Ohmic contact characteristics using a Ti/Al/X/Ti/Au metallization scheme, where X is TaN, TiN, or ZrN, deposited by sputtering was investigated by contact resistance measurements and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). The as-deposited contacts were rectifying and transitioned to Ohmic behavior for annealing at ≥600°C. A minimum specific contact resistivity of ∼6 × 10⁻⁵ Ω-cm⁻² was obtained after annealing over a broad range of temperatures (600–900°C for 60 s), comparable to that achieved using a conventional Ti/Al/Pt/Au scheme on the same samples. The contact morphology became considerably rougher at the high end of the annealing range. The long-term reliability of the contacts at 350°C was examined; each contact structure showed an increase in contact resistance by a factor of three to four over 24 days at 350°C in air. AES profiling showed that the aging had little effect on the contact structure of the nitride stacks.     

Improved Schottky Contacts on <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Type 4H-SiC Using ZrB<Subscript>2</Subscript> Deposited at High Temperatures

We report on improved electrical properties and thermal stability of ZrB₂ Schottky contacts deposited on n-type 4H-SiC at temperatures between 20°C and 800°C. The Schottky barrier heights (SBHs) determined by current-voltage measurements increased with deposition temperature, from 0.87 eV for contacts deposited at 20°C to 1.07 eV for those deposited at 600°C. The Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS) spectra of these contacts revealed a decrease in oxygen peak with an increase in the deposition temperature and showed no reaction at the ZrB₂/SiC interface. These results indicate improved electrical and thermal properties of ZrB₂/SiC Schottky contacts, making them attractive for high-temperature applications.     

Epitaxial Growth and Device Design Optimization of Full-Vertical GaN <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-<Emphasis Type="Italic">i</Emphasis>-<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> Rectifiers

The optimization of growth parameters, epitaxial structure, and device design for full-vertical gallium nitride (GaN) p-i-n rectifiers grown on n-type 6H-SiC substrates employing AlGaN:Si conducting buffer layers have been studied. The Al _x Ga_1−x N:Si (x = ~0.1) nucleation layer is calibrated to be capable of acting as a good buffer layer for subsequent GaN growth as well as to provide excellent electrical properties. Two types of full-vertical devices were fabricated and compared: one without any current guiding and the other with the current guiding in the p-layer. The reverse breakdown voltage for rectifiers with a relatively thin 2.5-μm-thick i-region without p-current guiding was found to be over −330 V, while one with p-current guiding was measured to be over −400 V. Devices with p-current guiding structures exhibit reduced reverse leakage current by an order of magnitude >4 at −100 V.     

Electrical Characterization of Defects Introduced During Sputter Deposition of Schottky Contacts on <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-type Ge

The authors have investigated by deep level transient spectroscopy the electron traps introduced in n-type Ge during sputter deposition of Au Schottky contacts. They have compared the properties of these defects with those introduced in the same material during high-energy electron irradiation. They found that sputter deposition introduces several electrically active defects near the surface of Ge. All these defects have also been observed after high-energy electron irradiation. However, the main defect introduced by electron irradiation, the V-Sb center, was not observed after sputter deposition. Annealing at 250°C in Ar removed the defects introduced during sputter deposition.     

Effect of Cryogenic Temperature Deposition of Various Metal Contacts on Bulk Single-Crystal <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Type ZnO

The effect of cryogenic temperatures during metal deposition on the contact properties of Pd, Pt, Ti, and Ni on bulk single-crystal n-type ZnO has been investigated. Deposition at both room and low temperature produced contacts with Ohmic characteristics for Ti and Ni metallizations. By sharp contrast, both Pd and Pt contacts showed rectifying characteristics after deposition with barrier heights between 0.37 eV and 0.69 eV. Changes in contact behavior were measured on Pd to anneal temperatures of ∼300 °C, showing an increase in barrier height along with a decrease in ideality factor with increasing annealing temperature. This difference with annealing temperature is in sharp contrast to previous results for Au contacts to ZnO. There were no differences in near-surface stoichiometry for the different deposition temperatures; however, low temperature contacts demonstrated some peeling/cracking for Pt and Pd.     

Thermoelectric Properties of NaCo<Subscript>2–<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Fe<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>O<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">y</Emphasis></Subscript>

NaCo₂O₄ has one of the highest figures of merit among all ceramic thermoelectric materials. Because of its large thermopower and low resistivity, the ceramic oxide NaCo₂O₄ is a promising candidate for potential thermoelectric applications. NaCo₂O₄ is, moreover, a ceramic compound with high decomposition temperature and chemical stability in air and it does not contain any toxic elements. Like all 3-d transition ions, Co ions have multiple spin and oxidation states. In this investigation, thermopower and electrical conductivity of NaCo₂O₄ as a function of substitution of Co by Fe ions were measured. Fe substitution for Co causes resistivity to increase, whereas the Seebeck coefficient remained nearly invariant, especially above 330 K. An erratum to this article can be found at     

Recovery of Dry Etching–Induced Damage in <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-GaN by Nitrogen Plasma Treatment at Growth Temperature

The n-GaN films grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) are etched in an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) reactor chamber. Atomic-force microscopy (AFM) characterization shows an increase of the surface roughness after the etching. Furthermore, Hall measurement and photoluminescence (PL) spectra highlight deterioration of the electrical and optical properties, respectively. Attempts to recover the damage are carried out by nitrogen plasma treatments accompanied by thermal annealing at the growth temperature in a molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) chamber. Improved electrical and optical properties compared with those of the as-etched GaN, evidenced in both Hall and PL measurements, show a pronounced decrease of the damage introduced by the ICP etching.     

Interfacial Reactions between Cu<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Ni<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">y</Emphasis></Subscript> Alloy Underbump Metallurgy and Sn-Ag-<Emphasis Type="Italic">z</Emphasis>Cu Solders

A reaction study of Cu _x Ni _y alloy (x = 0.2–0.95) under bump metallization (UBM) with Sn-Ag-zCu solder (z = 0–0.7) was conducted. Formation and separation of intermetallic compounds (IMCs), effect of Cu addition to the Cu _x Ni _y alloy and the solders, and compatibility of reaction products with currently available phase diagrams are extensively investigated. The increase of Cu content both in the Cu _x Ni _y alloy and in the solder promoted IMC growth and Cu _x Ni _y consumption; though, with regard to solder composition, the reverse trend was true of the solder reactions in the literature. The liquid + Cu₆Sn₅ area in the Sn-rich corner needs to be larger compared to the currently available Cu-Ni-Sn ternary phase diagram, and the maximum simultaneous soluble point of Ni and Cu in Sn needs also to be moved to the Ni-Sn side (e.g., Sn-0.6Cu-0.3Ni).     

Ir Diffusion Barriers in Ni/Au Ohmic Contacts to <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-Type CuCrO<Subscript>2</Subscript>

The use of Ir diffusion barriers in Ni/Au-based Ohmic contacts to p-type CuCrO₂ layers was investigated. A specific contact resistance of ~5 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm² was achieved after annealing at 500°C for the Ir-containing contacts, and the contacts were rectifying for lower anneal temperatures. In this case, the contact resistance was basically independent of the measurement temperature, indicating that tunneling is the dominant transport mechanism in the contacts. The morphology for the Ir-containing contacts was still smooth at 500°C although Auger electron spectroscopy depth profiling showed that some of the nickel had diffused to the surface and had oxidized. Contacts annealed at 800°C showed that some copper and most of the nickel had diffused to the surface and oxidized. The presence of the Ir diffusion barrier does increase the thermal stability of the contacts by ∼200°C compared to conventional Ni/Au contacts. By contrast, the use of other materials such as TaN, ZrN, and W₂B₅ as the diffusion barrier led to poorer thermal stability, with the contact resistance increasing sharply above 400°C.     

Waveguide photonic crystals with characteristics controlled with <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-<Emphasis Type="Italic">i</Emphasis>-<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> diodes

A one-dimensional waveguide photonic structure—specifically, a photonic crystal with a controllable frequency characteristic—is designed. The central frequency of the spectral window of the photonic crystal can be tuned by choosing the parameters of disturbance of periodicity in the photonic crystal, whereas the transmission coefficient at a particular frequency can be controlled by varying the voltage at a p-i-n diode. It is shown that the possibility exists of using the waveguide photonic crystal to design a microwave device operating in the 3-cm-wavelength region, with a transmission band of 70 MHz at a level 3 dB and the transmission coefficient controllable in the range from −1.5 to −25 dB under variations in the forward voltage bias at the p-i-n diode from zero to 700 mV.     

Thermoelectric Properties of Half-Heusler Bismuthides ZrCo<Subscript>1−<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Ni<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Bi (<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis> = 0.0 to 0.1)

The usefulness of half-Heusler (HH) alloys as thermoelectrics has been mainly limited by their relatively large thermal conductivity, which is a key issue despite their high thermoelectric power factors. In this regard, Bi-containing half-Heusler alloys are particularly appealing, because they are, potentially, of low thermal conductivity. One such a material is ZrCoBi. We prepared pure and Ni-doped ZrCoBi by a solid-state reaction. To evaluate thermoelectric potential we measured electrical resistivity (ρ = 1/σ) and thermopower (σ) up to 1000 K and thermal conductivity (κ) up to 300 K. Our measurements indicate that for these alloys resistivity of approximately a few mΩ cm and thermopower larger than a hundred μV K⁻¹ are possible. Low κ values are also possible. On the basis of these data we conclude that this system has a potential to be optimized further, despite the low power factors (α ² σT) we have currently measured.     

Improved Ni Schottky Contacts on <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Type 4H-SiC Using Thermal Processing

High-temperature processing was used to improve the barrier properties of three sets of n-type 4H-SiC Schottky diodes fabricated with Ni Schottky contacts. We obtained an optimum average barrier height of 1.78 eV and an ideality factor of 1.09 using current–voltage measurements on diodes annealed in vacuum at 500°C for 24 h. Nonannealed contacts had an average barrier height of 1.48 eV and an ideality factor of 1.85. The Rutherford backscattering spectra of the Ni/SiC contacts revealed the formation of a nickel silicide at the interface, accompanied by a substantial reduction in oxygen following annealing.     

Effect of High-Density Plasma Process Parameters on Carrier Transport Properties in <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-to-<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> Type Converted Hg<Subscript>0.7</Subscript>Cd<Subscript>0.3</Subscript>Te Layer

Exposure of p-type HgCdTe material to Ar/H₂-based plasma is known to result in p-to-n conductivity-type conversion. While this phenomenon is generally undesirable when aiming to perform physical etching for device delineation and electrical isolation, it can be used in a novel process for formation of n-on-p junctions. The properties of this n-type converted material are dependent on the condition of the plasma to which it is exposed. This paper investigates the effect of varying the plasma process parameters in an inductively coupled plasma reactive ion etching (ICPRIE) tool on the carrier transport properties of the p-to-n type converted material. Quantitative mobility spectrum analysis of variable-field Hall and resistivity data has been used to extract the carrier transport properties. In the parameter space investigated, the n-type converted layer carrier transport properties and depth have been found to be most sensitive to the plasma process pressure and temperature. The levels of both RIE and ICP power have also been found to have a significant influence.     

Electroluminescence in <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-InAs/AlSb/InAsSb/AlSb/<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>(<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>)-GaSb type II heterostructures with deep quantum wells at the interface

Luminescent characteristics of asymmetric p-InAs/AlSb/InAsSb/AlSb/p-GaSb type II heterostructures with deep quantum wells at the heterointerface are studied. The heterostructures were grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. Intense positive and negative luminescence was observed in the range of photon energies of 0.3–0.4 eV with a forward and reverse bias, respectively. Dependences of the spectra and intensities for positive and negative luminescence on the pumping current and on the temperature are studied in the range of 77–380 K. It is established that, at a temperature higher than 75°C, intensity of negative luminescence surpasses that of positive luminescence by 60%. The suggested heterostructures can be used as lightemitting diodes (photodiodes) with switched positive and negative luminescence in the mid-IR spectral range of 3–4 μm.     

Study of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-Ge-<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-GaAs heterojunction under hydrostatic pressure

The current-voltage characteristic of the p-Ge-n-GaAs heterojunction is experimentally studied under hydrostatic pressure as high as 8 GPa and temperature of 300 K. The baric coefficient of the edge of the valence band of Ge is calculated using the experimental results.     

Effect of Hydrogen Free Radicals on Hg<Subscript>1−<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Cd<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Te

The effects of atomic hydrogen (H) and Br/methanol etching on Hg_1−x Cd _x Te films were investigated using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Exposure of an as-received Hg_1−x Cd _x Te sample to H + H₂ resulted in H-induced TeO₂ reduction. The oxide reduction was first order with respect to H + H₂ exposure. Exposure to H + H₂ after etching the Hg_1−x Cd _x Te film in a Br/methanol solution induced Hg and C depletion. Hg and C removal was also observed after completely reducing the TeO₂ on the as-received sample. The removal process was hindered by the formation of a Cd-rich overlayer on both etched and unetched surfaces.     

A <Emphasis Type="Italic">G</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">m</Emphasis></Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">-C</Emphasis> continuous-time analog filter for IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n wireless LANs

A CMOS transconductor for multi-mode wireless channel selection filter is presented. The linear transconductor is designed based on the flipped-voltage follower (FVF) circuit and an active resistor to achieve the transconductance tuning. The transconductance tuning can be obtained by changing the bias current of the active resistor. A third-order Butterworth low-pass filter implemented with the transconductors was designed by TSMC 0.18-μm CMOS process. The results show that the filter can operate with the cutoff frequency of 10–20 MHz. The tuning range would be suitable for the specifications of IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n Wireless LANs under the consideration of saving chip areas. In the design, the maximum power consumption is 13 mW with the cutoff frequency of 20 MHz under a 1.8 V supply voltage.     

Planar <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-on-<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis> HgCdTe FPAs for LWIR and VLWIR Applications

Mainly driven by space applications, mercury cadmium telluride (MCT) focal-plane arrays (FPAs) have been successfully developed for very long wavelengths (λ _CO > 14 μm at 55 K). For this purpose, the standard n-on-p technology based on MCT grown by liquid-phase epitaxy (LPE) and involving vacancy doping has been modified to extrinsic doping by a monovalent acceptor. Due to the planar diode geometry obtained by ion implantation, most of the carrier generation volume is located in the p-type region with a thickness of approximately 8 μm. According to our understanding, the Shockley–Read centers connected with the Hg vacancies are thus significantly reduced. This situation should lead to longer minority-carrier lifetimes and smaller generation rates under equilibrium conditions, therefore yielding lower dark current. We indeed observe a reduction by a factor of approximately 15 by using extrinsic doping. Recent dark current data obtained in the temperature range from 55 K to 85 K on 288 × 384 FPAs with λ _CO(60 K) = 12 μm, either intrinsically or extrinsically doped, corroborate this finding. These data, new results on a 112 × 112 pixel demonstrator array with λ _CO(55 K) = 14.4 μm, and earlier measurements are compared with Tennant’s Rule 07 established for p-on-n technology.     

A filter of <Emphasis Type="Italic">H</Emphasis><Subscript>0<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis></Subscript> modes in a multimode rectangular waveguide

A technique is developed for calculating the electrodynamic characteristics of a filter of H _0n modes in the case of various configurations of the filter and various combinations of its mechanical and electric parameters. In numerical computations, the complete set of the filter parameters is taken into account. It is shown that the number of absorbing elements in the filter can be reduced from three to two and that, simultaneously, the quality characteristics of the filter can be improved.     

Very Low Pressure Magnetron Reactive Ion Etching of GaN and Al<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>Ga<Subscript>1−<Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>N Using Dichlorofluoromethane (Halocarbon 12)

In this work we report on the magnetron reactive ion etch (MRIE) technology for gallium nitride (GaN) and aluminum gallium nitride (Al _x Ga_1−x N) using dichlorodifluoromethane (CCl₂F₂), commonly known as halocarbon 12, with etch rates greater than 1,000 and 840 ?/min, respectively. Magnetic confinement of a very low pressure (10⁻⁴ Torr range) radio frequency (RF) discharge generates high-density plasmas, with low sheath voltages at the bounding surfaces, and very high dissociation of the source gas. Furthermore, the very low pressure of the etch process is characterized by long mean free paths so that sputtering contamination is reduced. MRIE chemistry has been monitored in situ by means of mass spectroscopy. Finally, we report on the successful fabrication of an indium gallium nitride (In _x Ga_1−x N) blue light emitting diode (LED), whose fabrication sequence included the MRIE etching of GaN in CCl₂F₂.