Study of proton irradiation effects on AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors

Abstract AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) were exposed to 3 MeV protons at fluences of 6 × 1013, 4 × 1014 and 1 × 1015 protons/cm2. The drain saturation currents decreased by 20% and the maximum transconductance decreased by 5% at the highest fluence. As the fluence increased, the threshold voltage shifted more positive values. After proton irradiation, the gate leakage current increased. The Schottky barrier height changed from 0.63 eV to 0.46 eV, and the ideality factor from 2.55 to 3.98 at the highest fluence. The degradations of electrical characteristics of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs are caused by displacement damages induced by proton irradiation. The density of vacancies at different proton fluence can be calculated from SRIM. Being an acceptor-like defect, the Ga vacancy acts as a compensation center. While N vacancy acts as a donor. Adding the vacancies model into Slivaco device simulator, simulation results match well with the trends of experimental data. Hall measurement results also indicate the concentration and mobility of 2DEG decrease after proton irradiation. It is concluded that the Ga vacancies introduced maybe the primary reason for the degradation of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs performance.

[1]  F. Ren,et al.  Effects of high-dose 40 MeV proton irradiation on the electroluminescent and electrical performance of InGaN light-emitting diodes , 2004 .

[2]  Marek Osinski,et al.  Effects of proton irradiation on AlGaN/InGaN/GaN green light emitting diodes , 1997 .

[3]  D. Look.  Defect-Related Donors, Acceptors, and Traps in GaN , 2001 .

[4]  C. R. Abernathy,et al.  High-energy proton irradiation effects on AlGaN/GaN high-electron mobility transistors , 2002 .

[5]  peixiong zhao,et al.  Proton irradiation effects on GaN-based high electron-mobility transistors with Si-doped Al/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/N and thick GaN cap Layers , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science.

[6]  Trap Assisted Tunneling Induced Currents in Neutron Irradiated AlGaN/GaN HFETs , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science.

[7]  J. Freitas,et al.  Penetration Effects of High-Energy Protons in GaN: A Micro-Raman Spectroscopy Study , 2011 .

[8]  S. M. Khanna,et al.  2 MeV proton radiation damage studies of gallium nitride films through low temperature photoluminescence spectroscopy measurements , 2000 .

[9]  A. Houdayer,et al.  Radiation hardness of gallium nitride , 2002 .

[10]  Umesh K. Mishra,et al.  Proton-irradiation effects on AlGaN/AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistors , 2003 .

[11]  R. Wilkins,et al.  The energy dependence of proton-induced degradation in AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science.

[12]  L. Eastman,et al.  Effects of γ‐irradiation on AlGaN/GaN‐based HEMTs , 2003 .

[13]  F. Ren,et al.  AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors Irradiated with 17 MeV Protons , 2008 .

[14]  Amir Dabiran,et al.  dc and rf performance of proton-irradiated AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors , 2001 .

[15]  Pierre Gibart,et al.  Properties of a hole trap in n-type hexagonal GaN , 2002 .

[16]  Amir Dabiran,et al.  Deep traps responsible for hysteresis in capacitance-voltage characteristics of AlGaN∕GaN heterostructure transistors , 2007 .

[17]  B. Wessels,et al.  Acceptors in undoped GaN studied by transient photoluminescence , 2003 .

[18]  H. Morkoç,et al.  Luminescence properties of defects in GaN , 2005 .

[19]  N. B. Smirnov,et al.  Effects of proton implantation on electrical and recombination properties of n-GaN , 2000 .

[20]  I. Adesida,et al.  60Co gamma radiation effects on DC, RF, and pulsed I–V characteristics of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs , 2004 .

[21]  A. Touboul,et al.  Electrostatic Mechanisms Responsible for Device Degradation in Proton Irradiated AlGaN/AlN/GaN HEMTs , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science.

[22]  Ronald D. Schrimpf,et al.  Electrical, spectral, and chemical properties of 1.8 MeV proton irradiated AlGaN/GaN HEMT structures as a function of proton fluence , 2003 .