Strain management of AlGaN-based distributed Bragg reflectors with GaN interlayer grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Abstract

We report the crack-free growth of a 45-pair Al0.30Ga0.70N/Al0.04Ga0.96N distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) on 2 in. diameter AlN/sapphire template by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. To mitigate the cracking issue originating from the tensile strain of Al0.30Ga0.70N on GaN, an AlN template was employed in this work. On the other hand, strong compressive strain experienced by Al0.04Ga0.96N favors 3D island growth, which is undesired. We found that inserting an 11 nm thick GaN interlayer upon the completion of AlN template layer properly managed the strain such that the Al0.30Ga0.70N/Al0.04Ga0.96N DBR was able to be grown with an atomically smooth surface morphology. Smooth surfaces and sharp interfaces were observed throughout the structure using high-angle annular dark-field imaging in the STEM. The 45-pair AlGaN-based DBR provided a peak reflectivity of 95.4% at λ = 368 nm with a bandwidth of 15 nm.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Aug 22, 2016
Source ID
10.1063/1.4961634

Entities

People

  • Fernando Agustín Ponce
  • Hongen Xie
  • Karan Mehta
  • P. Douglas Yoder
  • Russell D. Dupuis
  • Shuo Wang
  • Shyh-chiang Shen
  • Theeradetch Detchprohm
  • Tsung-ting Kao
  • Xiao Jia Jia
  • Yuh-shiuan Liu

Organizations

  • Arizona State University
  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
  • Georgia Research Alliance
  • Georgia Tech
  • National Science Foundation

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Materials science

Readers

  • Optical Physics and Photonics.
  • Semiconductor Device Technology