E.O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
APPLICATION OF TECHNOLOGY:
- Flat panel displays
- Energy efficient lighting
- Field effect transistors (FETs)
- Blue and green light semiconductor lasers
- Blue and green light emitting diodes (LEDs)
ADVANTAGES:
- Reduces the density of dislocations by up to three orders of magnitude
ABSTRACT:
Hexagonal GaN is grown in thin film form on substrates that are not lattice-matched (sapphire, silicon and silicon carbide). Current technology produces epilayers with a high density of dislocation, typically in the 1010/cm2 range. These defects, which act as recombination centers, are detrimental to device performance. Edith Bourret-Courchesne of Berkeley Lab has developed a new process to reduce the density of dislocations by up to three orders of magnitude. Berkeley Lab's average 8x107 dislocations/cm2 is the lowest reported to date for GaN grown without recourse to lateral overgrowth, a multi-step process. Use of the low dislocation density material is expected to increase device performance.
STATUS: U.S. Patent #6,534,332. Available for licensing
SEE THESE OTHER BERKELEY LAB TECHNOLOGIES IN THIS FIELD:
- High Quality GaN Films on Silicon Substrates Using HfN Buffer Layers, IB-1800
REFERENCE NUMBER: IB-1619
