Abstract
Ohmic contacts are formed by recess etching the source and the drain regions with line and dot patterns of a few hundred nanometers on an AlGaN/GaN heterostructure and treating the surface with tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) prior to ohmic metal deposition. Electrical characterizations show that ohmic behavior is obtained at a low annealing temperature of 700 ◦ C as the direct contact area to the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) is increased via the etched patterns, and the ohmic contact is further improved when the interface is treated with TMAH. The analyses based on transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and atomic force microcopy confirm the presence of an improved ohmic contact interface and morphology, suggesting a novel and viable route towards the fabrication of AlGaN/GaN-based devices with improved controllability and reliability.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
G. Greco, F. Iucolano and F. Roccaforte, Appl. Surf. Sci. 383, 324 (2016).
X. Kong, K. Wei, G. Liu and X. Liu, J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 45, 265101 (2012).
B. Jacobs, M. C. J. C. M. Kramer, E. J. Geluk and F. Karouta, J. Cryst. Growth 241, 15 (2002).
L. Wang, D-H. Kim and I. Adesida, Appl. Phys. Lett. 95, 172107 (2009).
L. Wang, F. M. Mohammed and I. Adesida, J. Appl. Phys. 103, 093516 (2008).
R. Gong et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 97, 062115 (2010).
F. Roccaforte et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 89, 022103 (2006).
M. Piazza et al., Microelectron. Reliab. 49, 1222 (2009).
T. Ohki et al., Phys. Status Solidi 6, 1365 (2009).
M. Mohamad et al., in Proceedings of the 2010 International Conference on Semiconductor Electronics (Melaka, Malaysia, June 28–30, 2010), p. 301.
Y. Takei et al., Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 55, 040306 (2016).
Y. Takei et al., Phys. Status Solidi 212, 1104 (2015).
S. Joglekar et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 109, 041602 (2016).
J. Zhang et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 107, 262109 (2015).
K-S. Im et al., Appl. Phys. Express 8, 066501 (2015).
J-W. Do et al., Thin Solid Films 628, 31 (2017).
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Civil-Military Technology Cooperation Program (No. 19-CM-BD-05).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jung, HW., Chang, SJ., Ahn, HK. et al. Recess-Etched and Tetramethylammonium Hydroxide-Treated Nanoscale Pattern on AlGaN/GaN High-Electron-Mobility-Transistors for Improved Ohmic Contact. J. Korean Phys. Soc. 76, 837–842 (2020). https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.76.837
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.76.837