GaN quantum dots grown by molecular beam epitaxy are examined by micro-photoluminescence. The exciton and biexciton emission are identified successfully by power-dependence measurement. With two different samples, it can be deduced that the linewidth of the peaks is narrower in the thicker deposited layer of GaN. The size of the GaN quantum dots is responsible for the binding energy of biexciton (EbXX); EbXX decreases with increasing size of GaN quantum dots. Under polarization studies, polar plot shows that emission is strongly linear polarized. In particular, the orientation of polarization vector is not related to any specific crystallography orientation. The polarization splitting of fine-structure is not able to resolve due to limited resolution of the system. The emission peaks can be detected up to 80 K. The curves of transition energy with respect to temperature are S-shaped. Strain effect and screening of electric field account for  blueshift of transition energy, whereas Varshni equation stands for redshifting. Both blueshifting and redshifting are compensated at temperature ranging from 4 K to 40 K.

It is the objective of this work to focus on heat dissipation in gallium nitride based solid-state logic devices as well as optoelectronic devices, a major technical challenge. With a direct band gap that is tunable through alloying between 0.7-3.8 eV, this material provides an enabling technology for power generation, telecommunications, power electronics, and advanced lighting sources. Previously, advances in these areas were limited by the availability of high quality material and growth methods, resulting in high dislocation densities and impurities. Within the last 40 years improvements in epitaxial growth methods such as lateral epitaxial overgrowth (LEO), hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE), molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), and metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), has enabled electron mobilities greater than 1600 cm2V/s, with dislocation densities less than 109/cm2. Increases in device performance with improved materials have now been associated with an increase in power dissipation (>1kW/cm2) that is limiting further development. In the following work thermophysical material of III-V semiconducting thin films and associated substrates are presented. Numerical modeling coupled with optical (micro-IR imaging and micro-Raman Spectroscopy) methods was utilized in order to study the heat carrier motion and the temperature distribution in an operating device. Results from temperature mapping experiments led to an analysis for design of next generation advancements in electronics packaging.

The electronic structures of Mn £_-doped epitaxial GaN films grown on sapphire substrates are studied by scanning tunneling microscopy in this work. Local structural information and the corresponding electronic properties of Mn £_-doped GaN films are probed by the combination of scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic-scale scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements. According to the electronic local density of states analysis indicates that Mn ions develop an acceptor level in GaN, revealing a gap state located at ~ 1.4 eV above the valence band edge of GaN. Furthermore, the energy position of the charge transfer levels of substitutional MnGa within GaN energy gap is also elucidated and discussed in the work.

In this paper, polar free-standing (0002)GaN wafer were fabricated by using the hydride vapor phase epitaxy(HVPE) technique on (002) LiGaO2 substrates. Polar of The (0002) GaN affects its luminous efficiency, but compared to other surface between the substrate, it has the smallest lattice mismatch. With the high growth rate of HVPE, hoping to grow high quality GaN thick layer. In the self-designed reactor, Metallic gallium and NH3 were the source of Ga and N. Nitrogen and hydrogen were used as the carrier gases HCl and nitrogen was designed to pass through liquid Ga to form GaCl fully. GaN deposition was realized Efficaciously by conducted steady NH3 and GaCl flows to the substrate suface, accommodated with additional hydrogen and nitrogen atmosphere flows.The parameters set of research mainly focus on reaction pressure, temperature, and growth time. In order to obtain better crystal quality, more attempts were made to grow buffer layer by chemical vapor deposition first, then a thick GaN layer by HVPE. The next step is to do the experiment and analyze with various instruments. Scanning Electron Microscope and atomic force microscopy Atomic Force Microscpoic are used to observe the surface morphology. X-ray Diffracion and transmission electron microscopy are used to know the lattice structure, and to understand the interface between the substrate and the GaN film crystal structure and epitaxial relationship. Finally, Photoluminescence spectroscopy is used to measure its optical properties and compare its defects and epitaxial quality.

We have studied the electronic properties of AlxGa1-xN/GaN heterostructures by using Shubnikov¡Vde Haas(SdH) measurement. Two SdH oscillations were detected on the samples of x=0.35 and 0.31, due to the population of the first two subbands with the energy separations of 128 and 109 meV, respectively. For the sample of x=0.25, two SdH oscillations beat each other, probably due to a finite zero-field spin splitting. The spin-splitting energy is equal to 9.0 meV. The samples also showed a persistent photoconductivity effect after illuminating by blue light-emitting diode. For the part of experiment , we installed a "Regulator" on low temperature and high magnetic field system, in order to control the temperature of sample from 0.3K to 10K accurately. For the convenience of SdH measurements at different tempertures.

The design, fabrication, and characterizations of the spin-polarized AlxGa1-xN/GaN HEMT structure have been achieved for spintronic application. By band calculation within linear combination of atomic orbitals and two-band k·p methods, the theoretical spin-splitting energy and minimum-spin-splitting surface of wurtzite structure have been investigated as a function of the Fermi wavevector with various strain-relaxations. Base on these results, the design of host material of the nonballistic spin-FET has also been proposed. By optimizing the Al composition and n2DEG, the Fermi surface of two-dimensional electron gas is supposed to reach the minimum-spin-splitting surface to produce resonant spin-lifetime. Because the high quality AlxGa1-xN/GaN HEMT structure is necessary for realizing the spin-FET, the influence of the growth conditions on the polarity and structure quality of the GaN epilayer have been studied on the sample grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Ga-polar AlGaN/GaN heterostructures on c-Al2O3 has been realized by growing over the Al-rich AlN nucleation layer. And the reduction of interface roughness and threading dislocation scatterings of the electrons in two-dimensional electron gas has also been achieved by growing GaN epilayer under slightly Ga-rich condition. Furthermore, the effect of different types of threading dislocation on the electron mobility of the AlxGa1-xN/GaN HEMT structure has been investigated as well. At low temperature, the electron mobility of two-dimensional electron gas in AlGaN/GaN heterostructures is majorly scattered by the edge type dislocation rather than the screw type. The designs of proposed host material for spin-FETs have been realized through growing high quality spin-polarized AlxGa1-xN/GaN HEMT structures with various Al composition (x= 0.191 ¡V 0.397) grown on c-Al2O3 by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. The high mobility (10682 cm2/Vs at 0.4 K), flat interface (surface roughness < 0.5 nm), and high quality HEMT provide a good environment to study the spin-splitting energy. To investigate the spin-splitting energy as functions of the Fermi wavevector, the Shubnikov-de Haas measurements were performed. A large spin-splitting energy (10.76 meV) has been fabricated in Al0.390Ga0.61N/GaN HEMT structure with kf = 8.14 ¡Ñ 108 m-1 for the host material of the Datta-Das spin-FET. And for the first time, the minimum-spin-splitting surface has been experimentally generated in Al0.390Ga0.61N/GaN HEMT structure with kf = 8.33 ¡Ñ 108 m-1 for the host material of the nonballistic spin-FET.

This thesis describes the development of III-Nitride materials for light emitting applications. The goals of this research were to create and optimize a green light emitting diode (LED) and laser diode (LD). Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) was the technique used to grow the epitaxial structures for these devices. The active regions of III-Nitride based LEDs are composed of InₓGa₁₋ₓN, the bandgap of which can be tuned to attain the desired wavelength depending on the percent composition of Indium. An issue with this design is that the optimal growth temperature of InGaN is lower than that of GaN, making the growth temperature of the top p-layers critical to the device performance. Thus, an InGaN:Mg layer was used as the hole injection and p-contact layers for a green led, which can be grown at a lower temperature than GaN:Mg in order to maintain the integrity of the active region. However, the use of InGaN comes with its own set of drawbacks, specifically the formation of V-defects. Several methods were investigated to suppress these defects such as graded p-layers, short period supper lattices, and native GaN substrates. As a result, LEDs emitting at ~532 nm were realized. The epitaxial structure for a III-Nitride LD is more complicated than that of an LED, and so it faces many of the same technical challenges and then some. Strain engineering and defect reduction were the primary focuses of optimization in this study. Superlattice based cladding layers, native GaN substrates, InGaN waveguides, and doping optimization were all utilized to lower the probability of defect formation. This thesis reports on the realization of a 454 nm LD, with higher wavelength devices to follow the same developmental path.

<p>SiC MESFETs and GaN HEMTs have an enormous potential in high-power amplifiers at microwave frequencies due to their wide bandgap features of high electric breakdown field strength, high electron saturation velocity and high operating temperature. The high power density combined with the comparably high impedance attainable by these devices also offers new possibilities for wideband power microwave systems. In this thesis, Class C switching response of SiC MESFET in TCAD and two different generations of broadband power amplifiers have been designed, fabricated and characterized. Input and output matching networks and shunt feedback topology based on microstrip and lumped components have been designed, to increase the bandwidth and to improve the stability. The first amplifier is a single stage 26-watt using a SiC MESFET covering the frequency from 200-500 MHz is designed and fabricated. Typical results at 50 V drain bias for the whole band are, 22 dB power gain, 43 dBm output power, minimum power added efficiency at P 1dB is 47 % at 200 MHz and maximum 60 % at 500 MHz and the IMD3 level at 10 dB back-off from P 1dB is below ‑45 dBc. The results at 60 V drain bias at 500 MHz are, 24.9 dB power gain, 44.15 dBm output power (26 W) and 66 % PAE.</p><p>In the second phase, two power amplifiers at 0.7-1.8 GHz without feed back for SiC MESFET and with feedback for GaN HEMT are designed and fabricated (both these transistors were of 10 W). The measured maximum output power for the SiC amplifier at Vd = 48 V was 41.3 dBm (~13.7 W), with a PAE of 32 % and a power gain above 10 dB. At a drain bias of Vd= 66 V at 700 MHz the Pmax was 42.2 dBm (~16.6 W) with a PAE of 34.4 %. The measured results for GaN amplifier are; maximum output power at Vd = 48 V is 40 dBm (~10 W), with a PAE of 34 % and a power gain above 10 dB. The SiC amplifier gives better results than for GaN amplifier for the same 10 W transistor.</p><p>A comparison between the physical simulations and measured device characteristics has also been carried out. A novel and efficient way to extend the physical simulations to large signal high frequency domain was developed in our group, is further extended to study the class-C switching response of the devices. By the extended technique the switching losses, power density and PAE in the dynamics of the SiC MESFET transistor at four different frequencies of 500 MHz, 1, 2 and 3 GHz during large signal operation and the source of switching losses in the device structure was investigated. The results obtained at 500 MHz are, PAE of 78.3%, a power density of 2.5 W/mm with a switching loss of 0.69 W/mm. Typical results at 3 GHz are, PAE of 53.4 %, a power density of 1.7 W/mm with a switching loss of 1.52 W/mm.</p> / Report code: LIU-TEK-LIC-2008:32

Heterostructures of the materials system GaN/AlGaN/GaN were grown by molecular beam epitaxy on 6H-SiC substrates and high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) were fabricated. For devices with large gate periphery an air bridge technology was developed for the drain contacts of the finger structure. The devices showed DC drain currents of more than 1 A/mm and values of the transconductance between 120 and 140 mS/mm. A power added efficiency of 41 % was measured on devices with a gate length of 1 µm at 2 GHz and 45 V drain bias. Power values of 8 W/mm were obtained. Devices with submicron gates exhibited power values of 6.1 W/mm (7 GHz) and 3.16 W/mm (25 GHz) respectively. The rf dispersion of the drain current is very low, although the devices were not passivated. / Heterostrukturen im Materialsystem GaN/AlGaN/GaN wurden mittels Molekularstrahlepitaxie auf 6H-SiC-Substraten gewachsen und High-Electron-Mobility-Transistoren (HEMTs) daraus hergestellt. Für Bauelemente mit großer Gateperipherie wurde eine Air-Bridge-Technik entwickelt, um die Drainkontakte der Fingerstruktur zu verbinden. Die Bauelemente zeigten Drainströme von mehr als 1 A/mm und Steilheiten zwischen 120 und 140 mS/mm. An Transistoren mit Gatelängen von 1 µm konnten Leistungswirkungsgrade (Power Added Efficiency) von 41 % (bei 2 GHz und 45 V Drain-Source-Spannung) sowie eine Leistung von 8 W/mm erzielt werden. Bauelemente mit Gatelängen im Submikrometerbereich zeigten Leistungswerte von 6,1 W/mm (7 GHz) bzw. 3,16 W/mm (25 GHz). Die Drainstromdispersion ist sehr gering, obwohl die Bauelemente nicht passiviert wurden.

Gallium nitride (GaN) based high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) offer numerous benefits for both direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF) power technology due to their combination of large band gap, high electrical breakdown field, high peak and saturation carrier velocity, and good stability at high temperatures. In particular, AlGaN/GaN heterostructures are of great interest because of the unique conduction channel that develops as a result of the spontaneous and piezoelectric polarization that occurs in these layers. This channel is a vertically confined plane of free carriers that is often called a 2 dimensional electron gas (or 2DEG). Although these devices have shown an improvement in performance over previous heterostructures, reliability issues are a concern because of the high temperatures and electric fields that develop during operation. Therefore, characterizing electrical and thermal profiles within AlGaN/GaN HEMTs is critical for understanding the various factors that contribute to device failures. Little research has been performed to model and characterize these devices under RF bias conditions, and is therefore of great interest. Under pulsed conditions, a single cycle consists of an “on-state” period where power is supplied to the device and self-heating occurs, followed by an “off-state” period where no power is supplied to the device and the device cools. The percentage of a single cycle in which the device is powered is called the duty cycle. In this work, we present a coupled electro-thermo-mechanical finite-element model for describing the development of temperature, stress, and strain profiles within AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under DC and AC power conditions for various duty cycles. It is found that bias conditions including source-to-drain voltage, source-to-gate voltage, and pulsing frequency directly contribute to the electro-thermo-mechanical response of the device, which is known to effect device performance and reliability. The model is validated by comparing numerical simulations to experimental electrical curves (Ids-Vds) and experimental strain measurements performed using scanning joule expansion microscopy (SJEM). In addition, we show how the operating conditions (bias applied and AC duty cycle) impact the thermal profiles of the device and outline how the stress in the device changes through a pulsed cycle due to the changing thermal and electrical profiles. Qualitatively, the numerical model has good agreement across a broad range of bias conditions, further validating the model as a tool to better understand device performance and reliability.