The effect of a HfO2 insulator on the improvement of breakdown voltage in field-plated GaN-based HEMT

A GaN/Al_0.3Ga_0.7N/AlN/GaN high-electron mobility transistor utilizing a field plate (with a 0.3 μm overhang towards the drain and a 0.2 μm overhang towards the source) over a 165-nm sputtered HfO₂ insulator (HfO₂-FP-HEMT) is fabricated on a sapphire substrate. Compared with the conventional field-plated HEMT, which has the same geometric structure but uses a 60-nm SiN insulator beneath the field plate (SiN-FP-HEMT), the HfO₂-FP-HEMT exhibits a significant improvement of the breakdown voltage (up to 181 V) as well as a record field-plate efficiency (up to 276 V/μm). This is because the HfO₂ insulator can further improve the modulation of the field plate on the electric field distribution in the device channel, which is proved by the numerical simulation results. Based on the simulation results, a novel approach named the proportional design is proposed to predict the optimal dielectric thickness beneath the field plate. It can simplify the field-plated HEMT design significantly.     

The electrical characteristics of a 4H-silicon carbide metal-insulator-semiconductor structure with Al2O3 as the gate dielectric

A 4H-silicon carbide metal-insulator-semiconductor structure with ultra-thin Al₂O₃ as the gate dielectric, deposited by atomic layer deposition on the epitaxial layer of a 4H-SiC (0001) 8⁰N-/N+ substrate, has been fabricated. The experimental results indicate that the prepared ultra-thin Al₂O₃ gate dielectric exhibits good physical and electrical characteristics, including a high breakdown electrical field of 25 MV/cm, excellent interface properties (1×10¹⁴ cm^-2) and low gate-leakage current (I_G = 1 × 10^-3 A/cm^-2@E_ox = 8 MV/cm). Analysis of the current conduction mechanism on the deposited Al₂O₃ gate dielectric was also systematically performed. The confirmed conduction mechanisms consisted of Fowler-Nordheim (FN) tunneling, the Frenkel-Poole mechanism, direct tunneling and Schottky emission, and the dominant current conduction mechanism depends on the applied electrical field. When the gate leakage current mechanism is dominated by FN tunneling, the barrier height of SiC/Al₂O₃ is 1.4 eV, which can meet the requirements of silicon carbide metal-insulator-semiconductor transistor devices.     

Effects of electrical stress on the characteristics and defect behaviors in GaN-based near-ultraviolet light emitting diodes

The degradation mechanism of GaN-based near-ultraviolet (NUV, 320-400 nm) light emitting diodes (LEDs) with low-indium content under electrical stress is studied from the aspect of defects. A decrease in the optical power and an increase in the leakage current are observed after electrical stress. The defect behaviors are characterized using deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) measurement under different filling pulse widths. After stress, the concentration of defects with the energy level of 0.47-0.56 eV increases, accompanied by decrease in the concentration of 0.72-0.84 eV defects. Combing the defect energy level with the increased yellow luminescence in photoluminescence spectra, the device degradation can be attributed to the activation of the gallium vacancy and oxygen related complex defect along dislocation, which was previously passivated with hydrogen. This study reveals the evolution process of defects under electrical stress and their spatial location, laying a foundation for manufacture of GaN-based NUV LEDs with high reliability.     

Characteristics in AlN/AlGaN/GaN Multilayer-Structured High-Electron-Mobility Transistors

A new multilayer-structured AlN/AlCaN/CaN heterostructure high-electron-mobility transistor （HEMT） is demonstrated. The AIN/AlCaN/CaN HEMT exhibits the maximum drain current density of 800mA/mm and the maximum extrinsic transconductance of 170 mS/mm. Due to the increase of the distance between the gate and the two-dimensional electron-gas channel, the threshold voltage shifts slightly to the negative. The reduced drain current collapse and higher breakdown voltage are observed on this AIN/AlGaN/CaN HEMT. The current gain cut-off frequency and the maximum frequency of oscillation are 18.5 CHz and 29.0 GHz, respectively.     

预辐射甲基丙烯酸甲酯形成过氧化物的结构及引发活性研究

乙烯类单体,在氧存在下经电离辐照形成具有强引发能力的过氧化物.离开辐射场,在一定条件下,过氧化物分解为自由基立即引发聚合进行.这一过程称为预辐射聚合.前人曾研究了预辐射聚合的反应机制和动力学过程.但对于辐照产生的过氧化物的组成、结构及其行为,只有推测,而无任何研究工作.本文报道以甲基丙烯酸甲酯(MMA)为单体,研究预辐照产物的结构和引发活性的初步结果.