Perimeter Driven Transport in the p-GaN Gate as a Limiting Factor for Gate Reliability

Stoffels, Steve; Posthuma, Niels; Decoutere, Stefaan; Bakeroot, Benoit; Tallarico, Andrea Natale; Sangiorgi, E.; Fiegna, Claudio; Zheng, Jia Xin; Ma, Xiaohua; Borga, M.; Fabris, Elena; Meneghini, Matteo; Zanoni, Enrico; Meneghesso, Gaudenzio; Priesol, J.; Šatka, A.

doi:10.1109/irps.2019.8720411

Cited by 32 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Therefore, the MIS p-GaN can effectively suppress the trapping/detrapping behavior and then enhance the gate reliability. Figure 7 compares the V G_BD -I G characteristics of the MIS-HEMT with that of other reported p-GaN gate HEMTs [5,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22]. The MIS-HEMT fabricated in this study exhibited the highest V G_BD and lowest gate leakage current.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 76%

Normally-Off p-GaN Gated AlGaN/GaN MIS-HEMTs with ALD-Grown Al2O3/AlN Composite Gate Insulator

et al. 2021

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A metal–insulator–semiconductor p-type GaN gate high-electron-mobility transistor (MIS-HEMT) with an Al2O3/AlN gate insulator layer deposited through atomic layer deposition was investigated. A favorable interface was observed between the selected insulator, atomic layer deposition–grown AlN, and GaN. A conventional p-type enhancement-mode GaN device without an Al2O3/AlN layer, known as a Schottky gate (SG) p-GaN HEMT, was also fabricated for comparison. Because of the presence of the Al2O3/AlN layer, the gate leakage and threshold voltage of the MIS-HEMT improved more than those of the SG-HEMT did. Additionally, a high turn-on voltage was obtained. The MIS-HEMT was shown to be reliable with a long lifetime. Hence, growing a high-quality Al2O3/AlN layer in an HEMT can help realize a high-performance enhancement-mode transistor with high stability, a large gate swing region, and high reliability.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 76%

Normally-Off p-GaN Gated AlGaN/GaN MIS-HEMTs with ALD-Grown Al2O3/AlN Composite Gate Insulator

et al. 2021

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“…Among the device designs that make this possible [10], the introduction of a recessed p-GaN gate on top of an AlGaN/GaN HEMT structure has recently been shown to offer particular promise. In fact, great progress in performance, stability, and reliability has recently been made with this device design and a few suppliers are already present in the market [132].…”

Section: E Interface State Formation In Gan Mis-hemtsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is speculated that the degradation might be initiated in the p-GaN layer due to the high level of defects related to Mg complexes [142]. A carrier multiplication process generating hot electrons is also suspected to play a role [132], [143].…”

Section: E Interface State Formation In Gan Mis-hemtsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, the role of the gate sidewall on gate degradation has come into focus [132], [144], [145]. Recoverable negative V T shifts, as well as permanent degradation, have been seen to occur mostly in the proximity of the gate edge, rather than at the center of the gate [144].…”

Section: E Interface State Formation In Gan Mis-hemtsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In fact, sidewall passivation has been shown to mitigate V T shifts [145]. In this model, gate failure is caused by a hotelectron-induced percolation path that is created in the dielectric on the gate sidewall [132]. Interruption of the sidewall leakage path by retracting the gate metal from the edge of the p-GaN gate region has been shown to mitigate gate breakdown [132].…”

Section: E Interface State Formation In Gan Mis-hemtsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stability and Reliability of Lateral GaN Power Field-Effect Transistors

Alamo

Lee

2019

IEEE Trans. Electron Devices

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GaN electronics constitutes a revolutionary technology with power handling capabilities that amply exceed those of Si and other semiconductors in many applications. RF, microwave, and millimeter-wave GaN-based power amplifiers are now deployed in commercial communications, radar, and sensing systems. GaN power transistors for electrical power management are also starting to reach the marketplace. From the dawn of this technology, inadequate transistor stability and reliability have represented stumbling blocks preventing widespread commercial use of GaN electronics. Intense research has been devoted to addressing these issues, and great progress has taken place recently. This article reviews some of the most interesting and significant stability and reliability issues that have plagued GaN power field-effect transistors for RF and power management applications.

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Gate-geometry dependence of electrical characteristics of p-GaN gate HEMTs

Lee

Joh

Lee

et al. 2022

Applied Physics Letters

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In this Letter, we experimentally investigate the impact of gate geometry on forward operation of Schottky-gate p-GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs). In particular, we analyze devices with changing gate-metal/p-GaN junction area and p-GaN/AlGaN/GaN heterostructure area in the linear regime. These devices exhibit unique threshold voltage and subthreshold swing scaling dependence with gate geometry that is in contrast with classic field-effect transistors. On the other hand, peak transconductance and ON resistance are found to scale classically. We find that these results arise from the fact that with a Schottky contact to the p-GaN layer, under steady-state conditions, the p-GaN layer voltage is set by current continuity across the gate stack. Furthermore, a detailed scaling study of the gate current reveals that current flow across the p-GaN/AlGaN/GaN heterostructure is not uniform—instead, it preferentially flows through the ungated portion of the p-GaN layer. Our study concludes that in Schottky-type p-GaN gate HEMTs, the respective areas of two junctions constitute an additional design degree of freedom to fine-tune device performance.

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Perimeter Driven Transport in the p-GaN Gate as a Limiting Factor for Gate Reliability

Cited by 32 publications

References 17 publications

Normally-Off p-GaN Gated AlGaN/GaN MIS-HEMTs with ALD-Grown Al2O3/AlN Composite Gate Insulator

Normally-Off p-GaN Gated AlGaN/GaN MIS-HEMTs with ALD-Grown Al2O3/AlN Composite Gate Insulator

Stability and Reliability of Lateral GaN Power Field-Effect Transistors

Gate-geometry dependence of electrical characteristics of p-GaN gate HEMTs

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