Effect of inductively coupled plasma damage on performance of GaN-InGaN multiquantum-well light-emitting diodes

InGaN multiquantum-well light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in the form of unpackaged die with emission wavelengths from 420 to 505 nm were.exposed to either Ar or H-2 inductively coupled plasmas as a function of both rf chuck power (controlling incident ion energy) and source power (controlling ion flux). The forward turn-on. voltage is increased by both types of plasma exposure and is a function of both the incident ion energy and flux. The reverse bias current in the LEDs is much larger in the case of H-2 plasma exposure, indicating that preferential loss of nitrogen leads to increased surface leakage. The current transport in the LEDs is dominated by generation-recombination (ideality factor similar to 2) both before and after the plasma exposures. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics.