中国物理B ›› 2025, Vol. 34 ›› Issue (11): 118501-118501.doi: 10.1088/1674-1056/ade1c0

• • 上一篇    

Degradation mechanisms of Schottky p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under high-temperature reverse bias stress

Fei Hu(胡飞), Chengbing Pan(潘成兵)†, Xinyuan Zheng(郑鑫源), Yibo Ning(宁一博), Xueyan Li(李雪燕), and Lixia Zhao(赵丽霞)‡   

  1. Tianjin Key Laboratory of Intelligent Control of Electrical Equipment, School of Electrical Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, China
  • 收稿日期:2025-02-05 修回日期:2025-06-04 接受日期:2025-06-06 发布日期:2025-10-30
  • 基金资助:
    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 12374395) and the Chinese Institute of Electronics (CIE)-SmartChip Research Project.

Degradation mechanisms of Schottky p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under high-temperature reverse bias stress

Fei Hu(胡飞), Chengbing Pan(潘成兵)†, Xinyuan Zheng(郑鑫源), Yibo Ning(宁一博), Xueyan Li(李雪燕), and Lixia Zhao(赵丽霞)‡   

  1. Tianjin Key Laboratory of Intelligent Control of Electrical Equipment, School of Electrical Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, China
  • Received:2025-02-05 Revised:2025-06-04 Accepted:2025-06-06 Published:2025-10-30
  • Contact: Chengbing Pan, Lixia Zhao E-mail:cbpan@tiangong.edu.cn;lxzhao@tiangong.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 12374395) and the Chinese Institute of Electronics (CIE)-SmartChip Research Project.

摘要: The degradation mechanisms of Schottky p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under high-temperature reverse bias (HTRB) stress were investigated and the evolution of the deep traps was identified using deep-level transient spectroscopy. The saturation current of p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs decreased by 18.2% and the threshold voltage shifted positively by 11.6% after the degradation. An electron trap (at 369 K) and a hole trap (at 95 K) were observed in the AlGaN/GaN region, while another hole trap (at 359 K) was found in the p-GaN layer before the stress. Meanwhile, after the stress, the concentration and capture cross section of the hole traps increased in both the p-GaN layer and the AlGaN/GaN region. With regard to the electron trap in the AlGaN/GaN region, the capture cross section increased significantly but the electron trap concentration slightly decreased, which may increase the electron trapping, thereby reducing electrons in the two-dimensional electron gas. These factors result in a positive shift in the threshold voltage and a decrease in the output current. This work provides a new insight into understanding the threshold voltage instability of Schottky p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs.

关键词: semiconductor devices, III–V semiconductors, impurity, defects

Abstract: The degradation mechanisms of Schottky p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs under high-temperature reverse bias (HTRB) stress were investigated and the evolution of the deep traps was identified using deep-level transient spectroscopy. The saturation current of p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs decreased by 18.2% and the threshold voltage shifted positively by 11.6% after the degradation. An electron trap (at 369 K) and a hole trap (at 95 K) were observed in the AlGaN/GaN region, while another hole trap (at 359 K) was found in the p-GaN layer before the stress. Meanwhile, after the stress, the concentration and capture cross section of the hole traps increased in both the p-GaN layer and the AlGaN/GaN region. With regard to the electron trap in the AlGaN/GaN region, the capture cross section increased significantly but the electron trap concentration slightly decreased, which may increase the electron trapping, thereby reducing electrons in the two-dimensional electron gas. These factors result in a positive shift in the threshold voltage and a decrease in the output current. This work provides a new insight into understanding the threshold voltage instability of Schottky p-GaN gate AlGaN/GaN HEMTs.

Key words: semiconductor devices, III–V semiconductors, impurity, defects

中图分类号:  (Semiconductor devices)

  • 85.30.-z
73.61.Ey (III-V semiconductors) 71.55.-i (Impurity and defect levels)