Effect of proton irradiation on AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor off-state drain breakdown voltage

Ya Hsi Hwang, Shun Li, Yueh Ling Hsieh, Fan Ren, Stephen J. Pearton, Erin Patrick, Mark E. Law, David Smith

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

The effect of proton irradiation on the off-state drain breakdown voltage of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) grown on Si substrates was studied by irradiating protons from the backside of the samples through via holes fabricated directly under the active area of the HEMTs. There was no degradation of drain current nor enhancement of off-state drain voltage breakdown voltage observed for HEMTs irradiated with 275 keV protons, for which the defects created by the proton irradiation were intentionally placed in the GaN buffer. HEMTs with defects positioned in the 2 dimensional electron gas channel region and AlGaN barrier using 330 keV protons not only showed degradation of both drain current and extrinsic transconductance but also exhibited an improvement of the off-state drain breakdown voltage. Finite-element simulations showed the enhancement of the latter were due to a reduction in electric field strength at the gate edges by introduction of charged defects.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number082106
JournalApplied Physics Letters
Volume104
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 24 2014

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Physics and Astronomy (miscellaneous)

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Effect of proton irradiation on AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor off-state drain breakdown voltage'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this