Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Analysis of Wide Band Gap Semiconductors Using Raman Spectroscopy

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Materials and Reliability Handbook for Semiconductor Optical and Electron Devices

Abstract

One of the main issues that must be addressed in the development of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs is the concern over device reliability. Due to the heteroepitaxial growth and other processing methods, mechanical stresses are inherent in these devices that can negatively impact device performance. Stress-induced effects on device performance due to Al content, (Zhang et al, J Appl Phys, 87:7981–7987, 2000), passivation, and substrate-induced residual stress in the GaN layer have been reported. In addition to impacting the 2-DEG, excessive strain in the AlGaN layer can induce crystallographic defects which lead to degraded device performance and shortened lifetimes. Under high-voltage conditions, the large electric field in the vicinity of the drain side gate edge is responsible for generation of large in-plane tensile strains in the AlGaN layer. These strains can result in device degradation via the formation of electrically active defects or trap states near the gate in the AlGaN. The direct measurement of the residual strain in the AlGaN layer is not simple due to its thickness (on the order of 25 nm). Instead, observation of the through-thickness variation of residual strain in the GaN layer allows a first-order estimation of the imposed strains in the AlGaN layer. In this chapter, we detail the use of Raman spectroscopy for characterizing AlGaN/GaN HEMTs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 259.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 329.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 329.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. O. Ambacher, J. Smart, J.R. Shealy, N.G. Weimann, K. Chu, M. Murphy, W.J. Schaff, L.F. Eastman, R. Dimitrov, L. Wittmer, M. Stutzmann, W. Rieger, J. Hilsenbeck, Two-dimensional electron gases induced by spontaneous and piezoelectric polarization charges in N- and Ga-face AlGaN/GaN heterostructures. J. Appl. Phys. 85, 3222–3233 (1999)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  2. T. Palacios, J.W. Chung, O. Saadat, F. Mieville, GaN and digital electronics: a way out of Moore’s law? Phys. Status Solidi C: Curr. Top. Solid State Phys. 6(6), 1361–1364 (2009)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  3. G. Meneghesso, G. Verzellesi, F. Danesin, F. Rampazzo, F. Zanon, A. Tazzoli, M. Meneghini, E. Zanoni, Reliability of GaN high-electron-mobility transistors: state of the art and perspectives. IEEE Trans. Device Mater. Reliab. 8, 332–343 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. J.A. del Alamo, J. Joh, GaN HEMT reliability. Microelectron. Reliab. 49, 1200–1206 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. J.R. Ferraro, K. Nakamoto, Introductory Raman Spectroscopy, 2nd edn. (Academic, London, 2003)

    Google Scholar 

  6. R. Trew, G. Bilbro, W. Kuang, Y. Liu, H. Yin, Microwave AlGaN/GaN HFETs. IEEE Microw. Mag. 6, 56–66 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Y.F. Zhang, I.P. Smorchkova, C.R. Elsass, S. Keller, J.P. Ibbetson, S. Denbaars, U.K. Mishra, J. Singh, Charge control and mobility in AlGaN/GaN transistors: experimental and theoretical studies. J. Appl. Phys. 87, 7981–7987 (2000)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  8. J. Bernat, P. Javorka, M. Marso, P. Kordos, Conductivity and hall effect measurements on intentionally undoped and doped AlGaN/GaN heterostructures before and after passivation. Appl. Phys. Lett. 83, 5455–5457 (2003)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  9. M. Azize, T. Palacios, Effect of substrate-induced strain in the transport properties of AlGaN/GaN heterostructures. J. Appl. Phys. 108, 2157–2164 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  10. A. Hushur, M.H. Manghnani, J. Narayan, Raman studies of GaN/sapphire thin film heterostructures. J. Appl. Phys. 106, 054317 (2009)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  11. W. Rieger, T. Metzger, H. Angerer, R. Dimitrov, O. Ambacher, M. Stutzmann, Influence of substrate-induced biaxial compressive stress on the optical properties of thin GaN films. Appl. Phys. Lett. 68, 970–972 (1996)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  12. V.Y. Davydov, N.S. Averkiev, I.N. Goncharuk, D.K. Nelson, I.P. Nikitina, A.S. Polkovnikov, A.N. Smirnov, M.A. Jacobsen, O.K. Semchinova, Raman and photoluminescence studies of biaxial strain in GaN epitaxial layers grown on 6H-SiC. J. Appl. Phys. 82, 5097–5102 (1997)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  13. K. Funato, S. Hashimoto, K. Yanashima, F. Nakamura, M. Ikeda, Residual strain dependence of optical characteristics in GaN layers grown on (0001) sapphire substrates. Appl. Phys. Lett. 75, 1137–1139 (1999)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  14. I.H. Lee, I.H. Choi, C.R. Lee, S.K. Noh, Evolution of stress relaxation and yellow luminescence in GaN/sapphire by Si incorporation. Appl. Phys. Lett. 71, 1359–1361 (1997)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  15. H. Park, C. Park, S. Yeo, S. Kang, M. Mastro, O. Kryliouk, T. Anderson, Epitaxial strain energy measurements of GaN on sapphire by Raman spectroscopy. Phys. Status Solidi (c) 2, 2446–2449 (2005)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  16. C. Kisielowski, J. Kruger, S. Ruvimov, T. Suski, J.W. Ager 3rd, E. Jones, Z. Liliental-Weber, M. Rubin, E.R. Weber, M.D. Bremser, R.F. Davis, Strain-related phenomena in GaN thin films. Phys. Rev. B: Condens. Matter 54, 17745–17753 (1996)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  17. D.G. Zhao, S.J. Xu, M.H. Xie, S.Y. Tong, H. Yang, Stress and its effect on optical properties of GaN epilayers grown on Si(111), 6H-SiC(0001), and c-plane sapphire. Appl. Phys. Lett. 83, 677–679 (2003)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  18. J.M. Wagner, F. Bechstedt, Properties of strained wurtzite GaN and AlN: Ab initio studies. Phys. Rev. B 66, 115202 (2002)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  19. Y.F. Li, B. Yao, Y.M. Lu, Y.Q. Gai, C.X. Cong, Z.Z. Zhang, D.X. Zhao, J.Y. Zhang, B.H. Li, D.Z. Shen, X.W. Fan, Z.K. Tang, Biaxial stress-dependent optical band gap, crystalline, and electronic structure in wurtzite ZnO: experimental and ab initio study. J. Appl. Phys. 104, 083517 (2008)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  20. A. Sarua, H.F. Ji, M. Kuball, M.J. Uren, T. Martin, K.J. Nash, K.P. Hilton, R.S. Balmer, Piezoelectric strain in AlGaN/GaN heterostructure field-effect transistors under bias. Appl. Phys. Lett. 88, 123–126 (2006)

    Google Scholar 

  21. T. Beechem, A. Christensen, D.S. Green, S. Graham, Assessment of stress contributions in GaN high electron mobility transistors of differing substrates using Raman spectroscopy. J. Appl. Phys. 106, 327–333 (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  22. I. DeWolf, Micro-Raman spectroscopy to study local mechanical stress in silicon integrated circuits. Semicond. Sci. Technol. 11, 139–154 (1996)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  23. Z. Feng, Micro-Raman scattering and microphotoluminescence of GaN thin films grown on sapphire by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition. Opt. Eng. 41, 2022 (2002)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  24. F.C. Wang, C.L. Cheng, Y.F. Chen, C.F. Huang, C.C. Yang, Residual thermal strain in thick GaN epifilms revealed by cross-sectional Raman scattering and cathodoluminescence spectra. Semicond. Sci. Technol. 22, 896–899 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  25. E.D. Haberer, C.H. Chen, M. Hansen, S. Keller, S.P. DenBaars, U.K. Mishra, E.L. Hu, Enhanced diffusion as a mechanism for ion-induced damage propagation in GaN. J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 19, 603–608 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. J.M. Hwang, J.T. Hsieh, H.L. Hwang, O. Breitschadel, H. Schweizer, Defect depth profiling using photoluminescence and cathodoluminescence spectroscopy: the role of oxygen on reactive ion beam etching of GaN in O-2/Ar plasmas. Appl. Surf. Sci. 175, 450–455 (2001)

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  27. D.G. Zhao, D.S. Jiang, J.J. Zhu, Z.S. Liu, S.M. Zhang, H. Yang, J.W. Liang, The influence of V/III ratio in the initial growth stage on the properties of GaN epilayer deposited on low temperature AlN buffer layer. J. Cryst. Growth 303, 414–418 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  28. S. Tripathy, S.J. Chua, P. Chen, Z.L. Miao, Micro-Raman investigation of strain in GaN and AlxGa1-xN/GaN heterostructures grown on Si(111). J. Appl. Phys. 92, 3503–3510 (2002)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  29. I. Ahmad, M. Holtz, N.N. Faleev, H. Temkin, Dependence of the stress-temperature coefficient on dislocation density in epitaxial GaN grown on alpha-Al2O3 and 6H-SiC substrates. J. Appl. Phys. 95, 1692–1697 (2004)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  30. K. Barghout, J. Chaudhuri, Calculation of residual thermal stress in GaN epitaxial layers grown on technologically important substrates. J. Mater. Sci. 39, 5817–5823 (2004)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  31. J. Pernot, E. Bustarret, M. Rudzinski, P.R. Hageman, P.K. Larsen, Strain relaxation in GaN grown on vicinal 4H-SiC(0001) substrates. J. Appl. Phys. 101, 154–160 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  32. C.G. Van de Walle, Effects of impurities on the lattice parameters of GaN. Phys. Rev. B 68, 3409–3412 (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  33. M.A. Moram, M.E. Vickers, X-ray diffraction of III-nitrides. Rep. Prog. Phys. 72, 457–462 (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  34. M. Leszczynski, H. Teisseyre, T. Suski, I. Grzegory, M. Bockowski, J. Jun, S. Porowski, K. Pakula, J.M. Baranowski, C.T. Foxon, T.S. Cheng, Lattice parameters of gallium nitride. Appl. Phys. Lett. 69, 73–75 (1996)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  35. A. Polian, M. Grimsditch, I. Grzegory, Elastic constants of gallium nitride. J. Appl. Phys. 79, 3343–3344 (1996)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  36. A.F. Wright, Elastic properties of zinc-blende and wurtzite AlN, GaN, and InN. J. Appl. Phys. 82, 2833–2839 (1997)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  37. M.A. Moram, Z.H. Barber, C.J. Humphreys, Accurate experimental determination of the Poisson’s ratio of GaN using high-resolution x-ray diffraction. J. Appl. Phys. 102, 658–665 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  38. S.J. Xu, W. Liu, M.F. Li, Effect of temperature on longitudinal optical phonon-assisted exciton luminescence in heteroepitaxial GaN layer. Appl. Phys. Lett. 77, 3376–3378 (2000)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  39. H. Seo, Q. Chen, M. Iliev, L. Tu, C. Hsiao, J. Mean, W. Chu, Epitaxial GaN nanorods free from strain and luminescent defects. Appl. Phys. Lett. 88, 153124 (2006)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  40. N. Thillosen, K. Sebald, H. Hardtdegen, R. Meijers, R. Calarco, S. Montanari, N. Kaluza, J. Gutowski, H. Luth, The state of strain in single GaN nanocolumns as derived from micro-photoluminescence measurements. Nano Lett. 6, 704–8 (2006)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  41. M. Jamil, J. Grandusky, V. Jindal, F. Shahedipour-Sandvik, S. Guha, M. Arif, Development of strain reduced GaN on Si (111) by substrate engineering. Appl. Phys. Lett. 87, 082103 (2005)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  42. T. Beechem III, Metrology of gan electronics using micro-Raman spectroscopy. Solid State Electron 56, 209–213 (2008)

    Google Scholar 

  43. F. Demangeot, J. Frandon, M.A. Renucci, O. Briot, B. Gil, R.L. Aulombard, Raman determination of phonon deformation potentials in alpha-GaN. Solid State Commun. 100, 207–210 (1996)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  44. F. Demangeot, J. Frandon, P. Baules, F. Natali, F. Semond, J. Massies, Phonon deformation potentials in hexagonal GaN. Phys. Rev. B 69, 231–235 (2004)

    Google Scholar 

  45. M. Klose, N. Wieser, G.C. Rohr, R. Dassow, F. Scholz, J. Off, Strain investigations of wurtzite GaN by Raman phonon diagnostics with photoluminescence supplement. J. Cryst. Growth 190, 634–638 (1998)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  46. J. Kim, K. Baik, C. Park, S. Cho, S.J. Pearton, F. Ren, Measurement of external stress on bulk GaN. Phys. Status Solidi a-Appl. Mater. Sci. 203, 2393–2396 (2006)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  47. W.G. Perry, T. Zheleva, M.D. Bremser, R.F. Davis, W. Shan, J.J. Song, Correlation of biaxial strains, bound exciton energies, and defect microstructures in GaN films grown on AlN/6H-SiC(0001) substrates. J. Electron. Mater. 26, 224–231 (1997)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  48. A. Soltani, A. BenMoussa, S. Touati, V. Hoel, J.C. De Jaeger, J. Laureyns, Y. Cordier, C. Marhic, M.A. Djouadi, C. Dua, Development and analysis of low resistance ohmic contact to n-AlGaN/GaN HEMT. Diamond Relat. Mater. 16, 262–266 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  49. T. Matsuki, N. Mise, S. Inumiya, T. Eimori, Y. Nara, Impact of gate metal-induced stress on performance modulation in gate-last metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors. Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. Part 1-Regul. Pap. Brief Commun. Rev. Pap. 46, 3181–3184 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. T. Onodera, H. Nishi, Theoretical-study of the piezoelectric effect on Gaas-Mesfets on (100), (011), and (111 bar) Ga, and (111) as substrates. IEEE Trans. Electron Dev. 36, 1580–1585 (1989)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  51. S.P. Alpay, L. Dong, S.K. Yadav, R. Ramprasad, Band gap tuning in GaN through equibiaxial in-plane strains. Appl. Phys. Lett. 96, 54–61 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  52. B. Benbakhti, A. Soltani, K. Kalna, M. Rousseau, J.C. De Jaeger, Effects of self-heating on performance degradation in AlGaN/GaN-based devices. IEEE Trans. Electron Dev. 56, 2178–2185 (2009)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  53. S. Karmalkar, U.K. Mishra, Enhancement of breakdown voltage in AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors using a field plate. IEEE Trans. Electron Dev. 48, 1515–1521 (2001)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  54. X.B. Zhang, T. Taliercio, S. Kolliakos, P. Lefebvre, Influence of electron-phonon interaction on the optical properties of III nitride semiconductors. J. Phys. Condens. Matter 13, 7053–7074 (2001)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  55. A. Matulionis, Hot phonons in GaN channels for HEMTs. Phys. Status Solidi a-Appl. Mater. Sci. 203, 2313–2325 (2006)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  56. S. Sridharan, A. Venkatachalam, P. Yoder, Electrothermal analysis of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors. J. Comput. Electron. 7, 236–239 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  57. A. Christensen, S. Graham, Multiscale modeling of hot spots in Gan high electron mobility transistors, in Ipack 2009: Proceedings of the Asme Inter Pack Conference 2009, Boston, MA, vol. 1, pp. 535–541 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  58. W.S. Li, Z.X. Shen, Z.C. Feng, S.J. Chua, Temperature dependence of Raman scattering in hexagonal gallium nitride films. J. Appl. Phys. 87, 3332–3337 (2000)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  59. M. Kuball, J.M. Hayes, Y. Shi, J.H. Edgar, Phonon lifetimes in bulk AlN and their temperature dependence. Appl. Phys. Lett. 77, 1958–1960 (2000)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  60. T. Beechem, A. Christensen, S. Graham, D. Green, Micro-Raman thermometry in the presence of complex stresses in GaN devices. J. Appl. Phys. 103, 332–336 (2008)

    Google Scholar 

  61. M. Kuball, J.M. Hayes, Y. Shi, J.H. Edgar, A.D. Prins, N.W.A. van Uden, D.J. Dunstan, Raman scattering studies on single-crystalline bulk AlN: temperature and pressure dependence of the AlN phonon modes. J. Cryst. Growth 231, 391–396 (2001)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  62. M. Kuball, J.M. Hayes, M.J. Uren, T. Martin, J.C.H. Birbeck, R.S. Balmer, B.T. Hughes, Measurement of temperature in active high-power AlGaN/GaN HFETs using Raman spectroscopy. IEEE Electron Device Lett. 23, 7–9 (2002)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  63. I. Ahmad, V. Kasisomayajula, D.Y. Song, L. Tian, J.M. Berg, M. Holtz, Self-heating in a GaN based heterostructure field effect transistor: ultraviolet and visible Raman measurements and simulations. J. Appl. Phys. 100, 92–97 (2006)

    Google Scholar 

  64. E.R. Heller, A. Crespo, Electro-thermal modeling of multifinger AlGaN/GaN HEMT device operation including thermal substrate effects. Microelectron. Reliab. 48, 45–50 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  65. H. Kim, A. Vertiatchikh, R.M. Thompson, V. Tilak, T.R. Prunty, J.R. Shealy, L.F. Eastman, Hot electron induced degradation of undoped AlGaN/GaN HFETs. Microelectron. Reliab. 43, 823–827 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 30332-0405, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Sukwon Choi & Samuel Graham

  2. Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, 45433, Columbus, OH, USA

    Eric Heller & Donald Dorsey

Authors
  1. Sukwon Choi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Samuel Graham
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Eric Heller
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Donald Dorsey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Samuel Graham .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Engineering, Kanazawa Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan

    Osamu Ueda

  2. Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA

    Stephen J. Pearton

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Choi, S., Graham, S., Heller, E., Dorsey, D. (2013). The Analysis of Wide Band Gap Semiconductors Using Raman Spectroscopy. In: Ueda, O., Pearton, S. (eds) Materials and Reliability Handbook for Semiconductor Optical and Electron Devices. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4337-7_17

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4337-7_17

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-4336-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-4337-7

  • eBook Packages: Physics and AstronomyPhysics and Astronomy (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation