High-density polarization-induced 2D electron gases in N-polar pseudomorphic undoped GaN/Al0.85Ga0.15N heterostructures on single-crystal AlN substrates

Abstract

The polarization difference and band offset between Al(Ga)N and GaN induce two-dimensional (2D) free carriers in Al(Ga)N/GaN heterojunctions without any chemical doping. A high-density 2D electron gas (2DEG), analogous to the recently discovered 2D hole gas in a metal-polar structure, is predicted in a N-polar pseudomorphic GaN/Al(Ga)N heterostructure on unstrained AlN. We report the observation of such 2DEGs in N-polar undoped pseudomorphic GaN/AlGaN heterostructures on single-crystal AlN substrates by molecular beam epitaxy. With a high electron density of ∼4.3 ×1013/cm2 that maintains down to cryogenic temperatures and a room temperature electron mobility of ∼450 cm2/V s, a sheet resistance as low as ∼320 Ω/◻ is achieved in a structure with an 8 nm GaN layer. These results indicate significant potential of AlN platform for future high-power RF electronics based on N-polar III-nitride high electron mobility transistors.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Aug 22, 2022
Source ID
10.1063/5.0107159

Entities

People

  • Debdeep Jena
  • Eungkyun Kim
  • Huili Grace Xing
  • Jashan Singhal
  • Jimy Encomendero Risco
  • Kazuki Nomoto
  • Masato Toita
  • Yong-Jin Cho
  • Zexuan Zhang

Organizations

  • Air Force Office of Scientific Research
  • Asahi Kasei
  • Cornell University
  • National Science Foundation
  • United States Department of Energy

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Materials science

Readers

  • Semiconductor Device Technology

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics
  • Microelectronics - Graphene