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A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "A：Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2018) | Viewed by 57596

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Prof. Dr. Jung-Hun Seo

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Department of Materials Design and Innovation, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York (SUNY), Buffalo, NY 14260, USA
Interests: wide bandgap semiconductors; synthesis; processing and devices
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Dear Colleagues,

While group IV or III-V based device technologies have reached their technical limitations (e.g., limited detection wavelength range or low power handling capability), wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductors which have band-gaps greater than 3 eV have gained significant attention in recent years as a key semiconductor material in high-performance optoelectronic and electronic devices. These WBG semiconductors have two definitive advantages for optoelectronic and electronic applications due to their large bandgap energy. WBG energy is suitable to absorb or emit ultraviolet (UV) light in optoelectronic devices. It also provides a higher electric breakdown field, which allows electronic devices to possess higher breakdown voltages. This Special Issue seeks research papers, short communications, and review articles that focus on novel synthesis, processing, designs, fabrication, and modeling of various WBG semiconductor power electronics and optoelectronic devices.

Dr. Jung-Hun Seo
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Wide bandgap (WBG) semiconductor synthesis
Power electronics
UV optoelectronics
Various micro/nano WBG semiconductor devices and processing

Related Special Issue

Wide Bandgap Semiconductor (WBG) Microelectronics and Optoelectronic Devices in Micromachines (9 articles)

Published Papers (14 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research

3 pages, 163 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Editorial for the Special Issue on Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices

by Jung-Hun Seo

Micromachines 2019, 10(3), 213; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10030213 - 26 Mar 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2064

Abstract

While conventional group IV or III-V based device technologies have reached their technical limitations (e [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

9 pages, 2853 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Breakdown Enhanced AlGaN/GaN Schottky Barrier Diode with the T-Anode Position Deep into the Bottom Buffer Layer

by Youlei Sun, Ying Wang, Jianxiang Tang, Wenju Wang, Yifei Huang and Xiaofei Kuang

Micromachines 2019, 10(2), 91; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi10020091 - 26 Jan 2019

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3412

Abstract

In this paper, an AlGaN/GaN Schottky barrier diode (SBD) with the T-anode located deep into the bottom buffer layer in combination with field plates (TAI-BBF FPs SBD) is proposed. The electrical characteristics of the proposed structure and the conventional AlGaN/GaN SBD with gated edge termination (GET SBD) were simulated and compared using a Technology Computer Aided Design (TCAD) tool. The results proved that the breakdown voltage (V_BK) in the proposed structure was tremendously improved when compared to the GET SBD. This enhancement is attributed to the suppression of the anode tunneling current by the T-anode and the redistribution of the electric field in the anode–cathode region induced by the field plates (FPs). Moreover, the T-anode had a negligible effect on the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in the channel layer, so there is no deterioration in the forward characteristics. After being optimized, the proposed structure exhibited a low turn-on voltage (V_T) of 0.53 V and a specific on-resistance (R_ON,sp) of 0.32 mΩ·cm², which was similar to the GET SBD. Meanwhile, the TAI-BBF FP SBD with an anode-cathode spacing of 5 μm achieved a V_BK of 1252 V, which was enhanced almost six times compared to the GET SBD with a V_BK of 213 V. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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12 pages, 2677 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Model Development for Threshold Voltage Stability Dependent on High Temperature Operations in Wide-Bandgap GaN-Based HEMT Power Devices

by Huolin Huang, Feiyu Li, Zhonghao Sun and Yaqing Cao

Micromachines 2018, 9(12), 658; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9120658 - 14 Dec 2018

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3708

Abstract

Temperature-dependent threshold voltage (V_th) stability is a significant issue in the practical application of semi-conductor power devices, especially when they are undergoing a repeated high-temperature operation condition. The V_th analytical model and its stability are dependent on high-temperature operations in wide-bandgap gallium nitride (GaN)-based high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) devices that were investigated in this work. The temperature effects on the physical parameters—such as barrier height, conduction band, and polarization charge—were analysed to understand the mechanism of V_th stability. The V_th analytical model under high-temperature operation was then proposed and developed to study the measurement temperatures and repeated rounds dependent on V_th stability. The validity of the model was verified by comparing the theoretical calculation data with the experimental measurement and technology computer-aided design (TCAD) simulation results. This work provides an effective theoretical reference on the V_th stability of power devices in practical, high-temperature applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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9 pages, 2745 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Dielectric Distributed Bragg Reflector on Electrical and Optical Properties of GaN-Based Flip-Chip Light-Emitting Diodes

by Shengjun Zhou, Haohao Xu, Mengling Liu, Xingtong Liu, Jie Zhao, Ning Li and Sheng Liu

Micromachines 2018, 9(12), 650; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9120650 - 08 Dec 2018

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4284

Abstract

We demonstrated two types of GaN-based flip-chip light-emitting diodes (FCLEDs) with distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) and without DBR to investigate the effect of dielectric TiO₂/SiO₂ DBR on optical and electrical characteristics of FCLEDs. The reflector consisting of two single TiO₂/SiO₂ DBR stacks optimized for different central wavelengths demonstrates a broader reflectance bandwidth and a less dependence of reflectance on the incident angle of light. As a result, the light output power (LOP) of FCLED with DBR shows 25.3% higher than that of FCLED without DBR at 150 mA. However, due to the better heat dissipation of FCLED without DBR, it was found that the light output saturation current shifted from 268 A/cm² for FCLED with DBR to 296 A/cm² for FCLED without DBR. We found that the use of via-hole-based n-type contacts can spread injection current uniformly over the entire active emitting region. Our study paves the way for application of DBR and via-hole-based n-type contact in high-efficiency FCLEDs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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9 pages, 4626 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Suppressing the Initial Growth of Sidewall GaN by Modifying Micron-Sized Patterned Sapphire Substrate with H₃PO₄-Based Etchant

by Wen-Yang Hsu, Yuan-Chi Lian, Pei-Yu Wu, Wei-Min Yong, Jinn-Kong Sheu, Kun-Lin Lin and YewChung Sermon Wu

Micromachines 2018, 9(12), 622; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9120622 - 26 Nov 2018

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3264

Abstract

Micron-sized patterned sapphire substrates (PSS) are used to improve the performance of GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs). However, the growth of GaN is initiated not only from the bottom c-plane but also from the sidewall of the micron-sized patterns. Therefore, the coalescence of these GaN crystals creates irregular voids. In this study, two kinds of nucleation layers (NL)—ex-situ AlN NL and in-situ GaN NL—were used, and the growth of sidewall GaN was successfully suppressed in both systems by modifying the micron-sized PSS surface. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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8 pages, 3790 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ku-Band 50 W GaN HEMT Power Amplifier Using Asymmetric Power Combining of Transistor Cells

by Seil Kim, Min-Pyo Lee, Sung-June Hong and Dong-Wook Kim

Micromachines 2018, 9(12), 619; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9120619 - 24 Nov 2018

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5346

Abstract

In this paper, we present a Ku-band 50 W internally-matched power amplifier that asymmetrically combines the power transistor cells of the GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) (CGHV1J070D) from Wolfspeed. The amplifier is designed using a large-signal transistor cell model in the foundry process, and asymmetric power combining, which consists of a slit pattern, oblique wire bonding and an asymmetric T-junction, is applied to obtain the amplitude/phase balance of the combined signals at the transistor cell combining position. Input and output matching circuits are implemented using a thin film process on a titanate substrate and an alumina substrate with the relative dielectric constants of 40 and 9.8, respectively. The pulsed measurement of a 330 μs pulse period and 6% duty cycle shows the maximum saturated output power of 57 to 66 W, drain efficiency of 40.3 to 46.7%, and power gain of 5.3 to 6.0 dB at power saturation from 16.2 to 16.8 GHz. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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9 pages, 2651 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Step-Double-Zone-JTE for SiC Devices with Increased Tolerance to JTE Dose and Surface Charges

by Yifei Huang, Ying Wang, Xiaofei Kuang, Wenju Wang, Jianxiang Tang and Youlei Sun

Micromachines 2018, 9(12), 610; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9120610 - 22 Nov 2018

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3756

Abstract

In this paper, an edge termination structure, referred to as step-double-zone junction termination extension (Step-DZ-JTE), is proposed. Step-DZ-JTE further improves the distribution of the electric field (EF) by its own step shape. Step-DZ-JTE and other termination structures are investigated for comparison using numerical simulations. Step-DZ-JTE greatly reduces the sensitivity of breakdown voltage (BV) and surface charges (SC). For a 30-μm thick epi-layer, the optimized Step-DZ-JTE shows 90% of the theoretical BV with a wide tolerance of 12.2 × 10¹² cm⁻² to the JTE dose and 85% of the theoretical BV with an improved tolerance of 3.7 × 10¹² cm⁻² to the positive SC are obtained. Furthermore, when combined with the field plate technique, the performance of the Step-DZ-JTE is further improved. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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8 pages, 3012 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Passivation Layers on Positive Gate Bias-Stress Stability of Amorphous InGaZnO Thin-Film Transistors

by Yan Zhou and Chengyuan Dong

Micromachines 2018, 9(11), 603; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110603 - 17 Nov 2018

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 5021

Abstract

Passivation (PV) layers could effectively improve the positive gate bias-stress (PGBS) stability of amorphous InGaZnO (a-IGZO) thin-film transistors (TFTs), whereas the related physical mechanism remains unclear. In this study, SiO₂ or Al₂O₃ films with different thicknesses were used to passivate the a-IGZO TFTs, making the devices more stable during PGBS tests. With the increase in PV layer thickness, the PGBS stability of a-IGZO TFTs improved due to the stronger barrier effect of the PV layers. When the PV layer thickness was larger than the characteristic length, nearly no threshold voltage shift occurred, indicating that the ambient atmosphere effect rather than the charge trapping dominated the PGBS instability of a-IGZO TFTs in this study. The SiO₂ PV layers showed a better improvement effect than the Al₂O₃ because the former had a smaller characteristic length (~5 nm) than that of the Al₂O₃ PV layers (~10 nm). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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9 pages, 2714 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Novel One-Transistor Dynamic Random-Access Memory (1T DRAM) Featuring Partially Inserted Wide-Bandgap Double Barriers for High-Temperature Applications

by Myeongsun Kim, Jongmin Ha, Ikhyeon Kwon, Jae-Hee Han, Seongjae Cho and Il Hwan Cho

Micromachines 2018, 9(11), 581; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110581 - 07 Nov 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3548

Abstract

These days, the demand on electronic systems operating at high temperature is increasing owing to bursting interest in applications adaptable to harsh environments on earth, as well as in the unpaved spaces in the universe. However, research on memory technologies suitable to high-temperature conditions have been seldom reported yet. In this work, a novel one-transistor dynamic random-access memory (1T DRAM) featuring the device channel with partially inserted wide-bandgap semiconductor material toward the high-temperature application is proposed and designed, and its device performances are investigated with an emphasis at 500 K. The possibilities of the program operation by impact ionization and the erase operation via drift conduction by a properly high drain voltage have been verified through a series of technology computer-aided design (TCAD) device simulations at 500 K. Analyses of the energy-band structures in the hold state reveals that the electrons stored in the channel can be effectively confined and retained by the surrounding thin wide-bandgap semiconductor barriers. Additionally, for more realistic and practical claims, transient characteristics of the proposed volatile memory device have been closely investigated quantifying the programming window and retention time. Although there is an inevitable degradation in state-1/state-0 current ratio compared with the case of room-temperature operation, the high-temperature operation capabilities of the proposed memory device at 500 K have been confirmed to fall into the regime permissible for practical use. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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5 pages, 964 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Improved UU-MESFET with High Power Added Efficiency

by Hujun Jia, Mei Hu and Shunwei Zhu

Micromachines 2018, 9(11), 573; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110573 - 05 Nov 2018

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2631

Abstract

An improved ultrahigh upper gate 4H-SiC metal semiconductor field effect transistor (IUU-MESFET) is proposed in this paper. The structure is obtained by modifying the ultrahigh upper gate height h of the ultrahigh upper gate 4H-SiC metal semiconductor field effect transistor (UU-MESFET) structure, and the h is 0.1 μm and 0.2 μm for the IUU-MESFET and UU-MESFET, respectively. Compared with the UU-MESFET, the IUU-MESFET structure has a greater threshold voltage and trans-conductance, and smaller breakdown voltage and saturation drain current, and when the ultrahigh upper gate height h is 0.1 μm, the relationship between these parameters is balanced, so as to solve the contradictory relationship that these parameters cannot be improved simultaneously. Therefore, the power added efficiency (PAE) of the IUU-MESFET structure is increased from 60.16% to 70.99% compared with the UU-MESFET, and advanced by 18%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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11 pages, 4027 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation on the I–V Kink Effect in Large Signal Modeling of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs

by Shuman Mao and Yuehang Xu

Micromachines 2018, 9(11), 571; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110571 - 05 Nov 2018

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5042

Abstract

The effect brought by the I–V kink effect on large signal performance of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) was investigated in this paper. An improved compact model was proposed to accurately characterize the I–V kink effect. The bias dependence of the I–V kink effect has also been taken into consideration. AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with different gate width were utilized to validate the proposed model. Built on the proposed model, the effect brought by the I–V kink effect on large signal performance has been studied. Results show that the I–V kink effect will lead to the degradation of characteristics, including output power, gain, and power-added efficiency at the saturation region. Furthermore, the influence of the I–V kink effect was found to be related with the input power and the static bias point in this work. The time domain waveform and AC dynamic load line were used for validation of results based on simulation. The consequences of this paper will be useful for the optimization of practical circuit design. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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14 pages, 3494 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors on Semi-Insulating Ammono-GaN Substrates with Regrown Ohmic Contacts

by Wojciech Wojtasiak, Marcin Góralczyk, Daniel Gryglewski, Marcin Zając, Robert Kucharski, Paweł Prystawko, Anna Piotrowska, Marek Ekielski, Eliana Kamińska, Andrzej Taube and Marek Wzorek

Micromachines 2018, 9(11), 546; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110546 - 25 Oct 2018

Cited by 30 | Viewed by 5372

Abstract

AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors on semi-insulating bulk ammonothermal GaN have been investigated. By application of regrown ohmic contacts, the problem with obtaining low resistance ohmic contacts to low-dislocation high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) structures was solved. The maximum output current was about [...] Read more.

Ω

·mm. Good microwave performance was obtained due to the absence of parasitic elements such as high access resistance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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12 pages, 9218 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Improved Large Signal Model for 0.1 μm AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors (HEMTs) Process and Its Applications in Practical Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) Design in W band

by Junfeng Li, Shuman Mao, Yuehang Xu, Xiaodong Zhao, Weibo Wang, Fangjing Guo, Qingfeng Zhang, Yunqiu Wu, Bing Zhang, Tangsheng Chen, Bo Yan, Ruimin Xu and Yanrong Li

Micromachines 2018, 9(8), 396; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9080396 - 10 Aug 2018

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5638

Abstract

An improved empirical large signal model for 0.1 µm AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) process is proposed in this paper. The short channel effect including the drain induced barrier lowering (DIBL) effect and channel length modulation has been considered for the accurate description of DC characteristics. In-house AlGaN/GaN HEMTs with a gate-length of 0.1 μm and different dimensions have been employed to validate the accuracy of the large signal model. Good agreement has been achieved between the simulated and measured S parameters, I-V characteristics and large signal performance at 28 GHz. Furthermore, a monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) power amplifier from 92 GHz to 96 GHz has been designed for validation of the proposed model. Results show that the improved large signal model can be used up to W band. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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9 pages, 1376 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Annealing Temperature on Optical Band Gap of Sol-gel Tungsten Trioxide Films

by Guanguang Zhang, Kuankuan Lu, Xiaochen Zhang, Weijian Yuan, Muyang Shi, Honglong Ning, Ruiqiang Tao, Xianzhe Liu, Rihui Yao and Junbiao Peng

Micromachines 2018, 9(8), 377; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9080377 - 30 Jul 2018

Cited by 47 | Viewed by 3618

Abstract

Tungsten trioxide (WO₃) is a wide band gap semiconductor material that is used as an important electrochromic layer in electrochromic devices. In this work, the effects of the annealing temperature on the optical band gap of sol-gel WO₃ films were investigated. X-ray Diffraction (XRD) showed that WO₃ films were amorphous after being annealed at 100 °C, 200 °C and 300 °C, respectively, but became crystallized at 400 °C and 500 °C. An atomic force microscope (AFM) showed that the crystalline WO₃ films were rougher than the amorphous WO₃ films (annealed at 200 °C and 300 °C). An ultraviolet spectrophotometer showed that the optical band gap of the WO₃ films decreased from 3.62 eV to 3.30 eV with the increase in the annealing temperature. When the Li⁺ was injected into WO₃ film in the electrochromic reaction, the optical band gap of the WO₃ films decreased. The correlation between the optical band gap and the electrical properties of the WO₃ films was found in the electrochromic test by analyzing the change in the response time and the current density. The decrease in the optical band gap demonstrates that the conductivity increases with the corresponding increase in the annealing temperature. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wide Bandgap Semiconductor Based Micro/Nano Devices)

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