p-GaN Gate HEMT With Surface Reinforcement for Enhanced Gate Reliability

By deploying a surface reinforcement layer (SRL) at the interface between Schottky metal and p-GaN in the gate stack, a p-GaN gate high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) with enhanced gate reliability is demonstrated. Prior to the gate metal deposition, the SRL is formed by an oxygen-plasma treatment and a subsequent high-temperature annealingprocess (at 800 degrees C) that enables surface reconstruction. Such a process converts several nanometers of p-GaN near the surface into a crystalline GaON layer, which exhibits stronger immunity to hot electron bombardment. With nearly identical threshold voltage and ON-resistance, the p-GaN gate HEMT with SRL yields two orders of magnitude reduction in gate leakage current at ON-state and an increase from 10.5 V to 12.7 V in forward gate breakdown voltage. Time-dependent gate breakdown measurement reveals an increase from 5.9 V to 7.8 V in the maximum ON-state gate drive voltage for a 10-year lifetime with a 1 % gate failure rate, which effectively expands the operating voltage margin of the p-GaN gate power HEMT.

Automated summary

This study demonstrates an improvement in gate reliability of a p-GaN gate HEMT by introducing a surface reinforcement layer between the gate and Schottky metal. The device shows reduced gate leakage current, increased forward gate breakdown voltage, and extended maximum ON-state gate drive voltage, expanding the operating voltage margin of the p-GaN gate power HEMT.