Nitride semiconductor device

• US 10,249,748 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2017
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kajitani, Ryo, Shibata, Daisuke, Tanaka, Kenichiro, Ishida, Masahiro, Ueda, Tetsuzo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lebentritt, Michael
• Application Number:
  US15/695,904
• Publication Number:
  US 20170365698A1
• Time in Patent Office: 574 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/08 with semiconductor regions connected to an electrode carrying current to be rectified, amplified or switched and such electrode being part of a semiconductor device which comprises three or more electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/10 with semiconductor regions connected to an electrode not carrying current to be rectified, amplified or switched and such electrode being part of a semiconductor device which comprises three or more electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/2003 Nitride compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/72 Transistor-type devices, i.e. able to continuously respond to applied control signals
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/778 with two-dimensional charge carrier gas channel, e.g. HEMT ; with two-dimensional charge-carrier layer formed at a heterojunction interface H01L29/803 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/808 with a PN junction gate , e.g. PN homojunction gate H01L29/7725, H01L29/775, H01L29/778, H01L29/806 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/812 with a Schottky gate H01L29/7725, H01L29/775, H01L29/778, H01L29/806 take precedence; with Schottky contact on top of heterojunction gate H01L29/802
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/0041 characterised by field-effect operation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/20 with a particular shape, e.g. curved or truncated substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/32 containing nitrogen
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/38 with a particular shape

Abstract

A nitride semiconductor device includes: a substrate of a first conductivity type having a first surface and a second surface on a side of the substrate opposite the first surface; a first nitride semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type which is disposed on the first surface of the substrate and includes an acceptor impurity; a second nitride semiconductor layer of a second conductivity type disposed on the first nitride semiconductor layer, the second conductivity type being opposite to the first conductivity type; a first electrode disposed on the second surface of the substrate; a second electrode disposed on the first nitride semiconductor layer; and a gate electrode disposed on the second nitride semiconductor layer.

Claims

1. A nitride semiconductor device, comprising:

a substrate of a first conductivity type having a first surface and a second surface on a side of the substrate opposite the first surface;

a first nitride semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type which is disposed on the first surface of the substrate and includes an acceptor impurity;

a second nitride semiconductor layer of a second conductivity type disposed on the first nitride semiconductor layer, the second conductivity type being opposite to the first conductivity type;

a first electrode disposed on the second surface of the substrate;

a second electrode disposed on the first nitride semiconductor layer; and

a gate electrode disposed on the second nitride semiconductor layer.

2. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising

a third nitride semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type which is disposed between the first nitride semiconductor layer and the second nitride semiconductor layer and includes a donor impurity.

3. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 2,

wherein the donor impurity is silicon.

4. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising

a fourth nitride semiconductor layer of the first conductivity type which is disposed between the first nitride semiconductor layer and the second nitride semiconductor layer and has a band gap greater than a band gap of the first nitride semiconductor layer.

5. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 4, further comprising

a first recess penetrating through the fourth nitride semiconductor layer and reaching at least the first nitride semiconductor layer,

wherein the second electrode is disposed to fill the first recess.

6. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 5,

wherein two-dimensional electron gas is formed at an interface between the first nitride semiconductor layer and the fourth nitride semiconductor layer, and

the second electrode is in contact with the two-dimensional electron gas.

7. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising

a fifth nitride semiconductor layer, a sixth nitride semiconductor layer, and a seventh nitride semiconductor layer stacked between the first nitride semiconductor layer and the second nitride semiconductor layer in stated order from the first nitride semiconductor layer,

wherein a band gap of the fifth nitride semiconductor layer is greater than or equal to a band gap of the first nitride semiconductor layer,

a band gap of the sixth nitride semiconductor layer is smaller than the band gap of the fifth nitride semiconductor layer, and

a band gap of the seventh nitride semiconductor layer is greater than or equal to the band gap of the first nitride semiconductor layer and greater than the band gap of the sixth nitride semiconductor layer.

8. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 7,

wherein the fifth nitride semiconductor layer and the seventh nitride semiconductor layer include a same material.

9. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 8, further comprising

a second recess formed in the first nitride semiconductor layer,

wherein the second electrode is formed to fill the second recess and is in contact with a lateral surface of each of the fifth nitride semiconductor layer, the sixth nitride semiconductor layer, and the seventh nitride semiconductor layer.

10. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 9,

wherein two-dimensional electron gas is formed at an interface between the first nitride semiconductor layer and the fifth nitride semiconductor layer, and

the second electrode is in contact with the two-dimensional electron gas.

11. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the acceptor impurity is one of carbon and transition metal.

12. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the gate electrode includes a plurality of gate electrodes, and

the second electrode is disposed between the plurality of gate electrodes.

13. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 12,

wherein, in a plan view, each of the plurality of gate electrodes has one of a circular shape, a multangular shape, and a slit shape.

14. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the second electrode includes a plurality of second electrodes, and

the gate electrode is disposed between the plurality of second electrodes.

15. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 14,

wherein, in a plan view, each of the plurality of second electrodes has one of a circular shape, a multangular shape, and a slit shape.

16. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the first electrode is a drain electrode and the second electrode is a source electrode.

17. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the first electrode is a source electrode and the second electrode is a drain electrode.

18. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 16,

wherein the drain electrode is a schottky electrode.

19. The nitride semiconductor device according to claim 17,

wherein the drain electrode is a schottky electrode.