Nitride-based semiconductor device and method for preparing the same

• US 10,727,054 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2019
• Issued: 07/28/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xiamen San'An Optoelectronics Co.Ltd. (Sanan Optoelectronics Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Xiamen San'An Optoelectronics Co.Ltd. (Sanan Optoelectronics Company Limited)
• Inventors: Zhu, Xueliang, Liu, Jianming, Chuo, Chang-Cheng, Chen, Bing-Yang, Hsu, Chen-ke, Chang, Chung-Ying
• Primary Examiner(s): Yushin, Nikolay K
• Application Number:
  US16/447,775
• Publication Number:
  US 20190304781A1
• Time in Patent Office: 404 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0243 Surface structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02458 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0254 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0262 Reduction or decomposition of gaseous compounds, e.g. CVD
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02631 Physical deposition at reduced pressure, e.g. MBE, sputtering, evaporation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02658 Pretreatments cleaning in general H01L21/02041
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/007 comprising nitride compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/0075 comprising nitride compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/025 Physical imperfections, e.g. particular concentration or distribution of impurities
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/12 with a stress relaxation structure, e.g. buffer layer
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/22 Roughened surfaces, e.g. at the interface between epitaxial layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/32 containing nitrogen

Abstract

A nitride-based semiconductor device includes a patterned substrate having an etched surface that is formed with a plurality of protrusions, an aluminum nitride (AlN)-based film disposed on the etched surface, and a nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure disposed on the aluminum nitride-based film. Each of the protrusions has a side face. The AlN-based film includes a plurality of crystal defects formed on the side face of each protrusion. Each of the crystal defects has a width of smaller than 20 nm and/or the number of the crystal defects that are formed on the side face of each protrusion and that have a width of greater than 10 nm is less than 10. A method for preparing the semiconductor device is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A nitride-based semiconductor device, comprising:

a patterned substrate that has a patterned surface formed with a plurality of protrusions, each of said protrusions having a side face;

an aluminum nitride-based laminate that is formed on said patterned surface of said patterned substrate to cover said protrusions, and that includes a plurality of aluminum nitride-based films and a plurality of crystal defects formed on said side face of each of said protrusions; and

a nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure that is disposed on said aluminum nitride-based laminate,

wherein during formation of each of the aluminum nitride-based films, plasma etching is conducted to remove crystal defects formed thereon such that each of said crystal defects has a width of smaller than 20 nm.

2. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the number of said crystal defects that are formed on said side face of each of said protrusions and that have a width of greater than 10 nm is less than 10.

3. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said aluminum nitride-based films is a Al_xGa_(1-x)N film, in which 0<

x≤

1.

4. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said aluminum nitride-based laminate has a thickness ranging from 3 nm to 100 nm.

5. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure includes gallium nitride-based material.

6. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure includes an n-type semiconductor layer, a light emitting layer and a p-type semiconductor layer.

7. A nitride-based semiconductor device, comprising:

a patterned substrate that has a patterned surface formed with a plurality of protrusions, each of said protrusions having a side face;

an aluminum nitride-based laminate that is formed on said patterned surface of said patterned substrate to cover said protrusions, and that includes a plurality of aluminum nitride-based films and a plurality of crystal defects formed on said side face of each of said protrusions; and

a nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure that is disposed on said aluminum nitride-based laminate,

wherein during formation of each of the aluminum nitride-based films, plasma etching is conducted to remove crystal defects formed thereon such that the number of said crystal defects formed on said side wall of each of said protrusions and having a width of greater than 10 nm is less than 10.

8. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 7, wherein each of said aluminum nitride-based films is a Al_xGa_(1-x)N-based film, in which 0<

x≤

1.

9. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 7, wherein said aluminum nitride-based laminate has a thickness ranging from 3 nm to 100 nm.

10. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 7, wherein said nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure includes gallium nitride-based material.

11. The nitride-based semiconductor device as claimed in claim 7, wherein said nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure includes an n-type semiconductor layer, a light emitting layer and a p-type semiconductor layer.

12. A method for preparing a nitride-based semiconductor device, comprising the steps of:

(a) patterning a surface of a substrate so as to obtain a patterned substrate having a patterned surface formed with a plurality of protrusions, each of the protrusions having a side face;

(b) forming an aluminum nitride-based film on the patterned surface of the patterned substrate by physical vapor deposition (PVD) to cover the protrusions;

(c) forming a nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure on the aluminum nitride-based film by metal organic chemical-vapor deposition (MOCVD); and

(d) after step (b) of forming the aluminum nitride-based film, plasma etching the aluminum nitride-based film to remove crystal defects of the aluminum nitride-based film formed on the side faces of the protrusions so as to reduce defects of the nitride-based semiconductor device;

wherein the method further comprises, before step (c);

(e) forming an additional aluminum nitride-based film on the aluminum nitride-based film formed in step (b), followed by plasma etching the additional aluminum nitride-based film to remove crystal defects of the additional aluminum nitride-based film; and

(f) repeating step (e) so as to form a plurality of the aluminum nitride-based films on the patterned substrate.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein, to reduce defects of the nitride-based semiconductor device, the method further comprises plasma etching the patterned surface of the patterned substrate before step (b) of forming the aluminum nitride-based film.

14. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein each of the aluminum nitride-based films independently has a thickness ranging from 1 nm to 5 nm, and the aluminum nitride-based films have a total thickness ranging from 3 nm to 100 nm.

15. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein each of the aluminum nitride-based films is a Al_xGa_(1-x)N-based film, in which 0<

x≤

1.

16. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the aluminum nitride-based films include a plurality of crystal defects formed on the side face of each of the protrusions, each of the crystal defects having a width of smaller than 20 nm.

17. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the aluminum nitride-based films include a plurality of crystal defects formed on the side face of each of the protrusions, the number of the crystal defects that have a width of greater than 10 nm being less than 10.

18. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure includes an n-type semiconductor layer, a light emitting layer and a p-type semiconductor layer.

19. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein said nitride-based semiconductor stacked structure includes gallium nitride-based material.