Nitride Based Quantum Tunneling Electronics and Optoelectronics, Paul R. Berger

Advisor: Paul R. Berger Students: Evan Cornuelle (ECE Ph.D. candidate) Stefan Kosanovic (ECE undergraduate researcher) Collaborators: Elliott Brown (Wright State University) Weidong Zhang (Wright State University) David Storm (Naval Research Laboratory) David Meyer (Naval Research Laboratory) Richard Molnar (MIT Lincoln Laboratory) Jeffrey Daulton (MIT Lincoln Laboratory) Patrick J. Fay (University of Notre Dame) Former Graduate Students: Ms. Parastou Fakhimi (Ph.D. 2019) Tyler Growden (PhD 2016)

Importance of the Problem:

Thin vertical devices using III-nitrides have been met with a myriad of materials science challenges, but mastering this family will open new vistas of novel vertical nitride devices using thin heterobarriers.

Brief Description of Our Work and Results:

We report on the design and fabrication of high current density GaN/AlN double barrier resonant tunneling diodes (RTD) grown via plasma assisted molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) on bulk GaN substrates. A quantum-transport solver was used to model and optimize designs with high levels of doping and ultra-thin AlN barriers. The devices displayed repeatable room temperature negative differential resistance (NDR) with peak-to-valley current ratios (PVCR) ranging from 1.20 to 1.60. A maximum peak tunneling current density (Jp) of 431 kA/cm2 was observed. Cross-gap near-UV (370-385 nm) electroluminescence (EL) was observed above +6 V when holes, generated from a polarization induced Zener tunneling effect, recombine with electrons in the emitter region. Analysis of temperature dependent measurements, thermal resistance, and the measured EL spectra revealed the presence of severe self-heating effects.

Awards and Citations

• ONR DURIP ($124K, 2018-2019).
• ONR Post-Post-MURI "DATE" ($1.5M, 2016-2017).
• ONR Post-MURI "DATE" ($3.7M, 2014-2016).
• ONR MURI "DATE" ($3.8M, 2011-2014).

Patents

• "Single Layer Double Barrier Polarization Induced Resonant Tunneling Diode," Paul R. Berger and Tyler A. Growden [Disclosure submitted March 11, 2014]. Provisional Filed May 2, 2014 [Application Number 61/987,876].
• "Polarization Induced Nitride Barrier Tunnel Diodes," Paul R. Berger and Tyler A. Growden, [Disclosure submitted October 10, 2013; Provisional filed July 10, 2014, Application Number 62/022,876].
• "Gallium Nitride Cross-Gap Light Emitters based on Unipolar-Doped Tunneling Structure," Tyler A. Growden, David F. Storm, Weidong Zhang, Elliott R. Brown, and Paul R. Berger [Disclosure submitted September 16, 2016]. Provisional Filed September 27, 2016 (Application Number 15714749, Issued October 29, 2019, U. S. Patent # 10,461,216.

Publications

1. "Near-UV Electroluminescence in Unipolar-Doped, Bipolar-Tunneling (UDBT) GaN/AlN Heterostructures," Tyler A. Growden, Weidong Zhang, Elliott R. Brown, David F. Storm, David J. Meyer, and Paul R. Berger, Nature's Light: Science and Applications [accepted September 10, 2017; accepted article preview, 27 October 2017]; vol. 7, e17150 (2018) https://doi.org/10.1038/lsa.2017.150 [, First Unipolar-Doped Bipolar Electroluminesence

2. "930 kA/cm² peak tunneling current density in GaN/AlN resonant tunneling diodes grown on MOCVD GaN-on-sapphire template," Tyler A. Growden, Evan M. Cornuelle, David F. Storm, Weidong Zhang, Elliott R. Brown, Logan M. Whitaker, Jeffrey W. Daulton, Richard Molnar, David J. Meyer, and Paul R. Berger, Applied Physics Letters, 114, 203503 http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.5095056 (2019) Online May 22, 2019. PDF (1647 kB)

3. "431 kA/cm² Peak Tunneling Current Density in GaN/AlN Resonant Tunneling Diodes,” Tyler A. Growden, Weidong Zhang, Elliott R. Brown, David F. Storm, Katurah Hansen, Parastou Fakhimi, David J. Meyer, and Paul R. Berger, Applied Physics Letters, 112, 033508 (2018) (accepted January 2, 2018). Online January 19, 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.5010794 (2018) (accepted January 2, 2018). Online January 19, 2018. PDF (1547 kB)

4. "AlN/GaN/AlN resonant tunneling diodes grown by RF-plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy on freestanding GaN," D.F. Storm, T.A. Growden, D.S. Katzer, M.T. Hardy, W. Zhang, E.R. Brown, P.R. Berger, and D.J. Meyer, Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B, vol. 35, No. 2 pp. 02B110-1 to 02B110-4, http://dx.doi.org/10.1116/1.4977779 (March/April 2017). PDF (1245 kB)

5. "Highly repeatable room temperature negative differential resistance in AlN/GaN resonant tunneling diodes grown by molecular beam epitaxy," Tyler A. Growden, David F. Storm, Weidong Zhang, Elliott R. Brown, David J. Meyer, Parastou Fakhimi, and Paul R. Berger, Applied Physics Letters, 109, 083504 http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4961442 (Submitted May 5, 2016, Published August 2016). PDF (1180 kB) [, First Peer-Reviewed Report of Repeatable NDR in Gallium Nitride

6. "Record High Current Density (776 kA/cm²) InGaN/GaN Resonant Tunneling Diodes using Polarization Induced Barriers Tyler A. Growden, Sriram Krishnamoorthy, Siddharth Rajan, and Paul R. Berger, 10th International Conference on Nitride Semiconductors, Washington, DC (August 25-30, 2013). [, Record Current Density in GaN-based Interband Tunnel Diodes

7. "Methods for Obtaining High Interband Tunneling Current in III-Nitrides," Tyler A. Growden, Sriram Krishnamoorthy, Digbijoy N. Nath, Anisha Ramesh, Siddharth Rajan, and Paul R. Berger, IEEE DRC Digest, pp. 163-164 (2012). PDF (649 kB)

6. "A Nonlinear Circuit Model for Switching Process in Quantum Well Devices," W-D. Zhang, E.R. Brown, T.A. Growden, P.R. Berger, R. Droopad, IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, vol. 63, No. 12, Pages: 4993 - 4997, https://doi.org/10.1109/TED.2016.2617681 (December 2016). PDF (950 kB)

7. "Experimental Determination of Quantum-Well Lifetime Effect on Large-Signal Resonant Tunneling Diode Switching Time," Tyler A. Growden, E. R. Brown, Weidong Zhang, Ravi Droopad, and Paul R. Berger, Applied Physics Letters, 107, 153506 (2015); https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4933258. PDF (1162 kB) [, First Measurement of Quantum Well Lifetime Effect on RTDs

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