Optical thin film, semiconductor light emitting device having the same and methods of fabricating the same

• US 20080088932A1
• Filed: 01/25/2007
• Published: 04/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Schubert, E. Fred, Song, June-o, Kim, Jong-kyu, Cho, Jae-hee, Sone, Cheol-soo, Mont, Frank Wilhelm
• Granted Patent: US 7,483,212 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 359/586
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 1/113 using inorganic layer materials only

Abstract

Provided are a highly transmissive optical thin film having an improved structure, in which, optical reflection (due to a difference in the refractive index between a semiconductor material and the air, when light is extracted from a semiconductor light emitting device into the air) may be suppressed, an optical output loss may be reduced and light transmittance efficiency may be maximized or increased, a semiconductor light emitting device having the same, and methods of fabricating the same. The optical thin film may include a first material layer having a first refractive index, a second material layer formed on the first material layer and having a second refractive index that is smaller than the first refractive index, and a graded-refractive index layer interposed or inserted between the first material layer and the second material layer and having a multi-layer structure in which refractive index distribution gradually decreases in the range between the first refractive index and the second refractive index as the refractive index distribution progresses from the first material layer toward the second material layer.

Claims

1. An optical thin film comprising:

a first material layer having a first refractive index;

a second material layer on the first material layer and having a second refractive index that is smaller than the first refractive index; and

a graded-refractive index layer between the first material layer and the second material layer and having a multi-layer structure in which a refractive index distribution gradually decreases in a range between the first refractive index and the second refractive index as the refractive index distribution progresses from the first material layer toward the second material layer.

2. The optical thin film of claim 1, wherein the first refractive index and the second refractive index are in a range of about 1-about 5.

3. The optical thin film of claim 1, wherein each of the first material layer, the second material layer, and the graded-refractive index layer is formed of one material selected from the group consisting of TiO₂, SiC, GaN, GaP, SiN_y, ZrO₂, ITO, AlN, Al₂O₃, MgO, SiO₂, CaF₂, and MgF₂.

4. The optical thin film of claim 3, wherein the second material layer and the graded-refractive index layer are formed of materials having the same components.

5. The optical thin film of claim 1, wherein the graded-refractive index layer is formed with a chemical composition of (the first material)_x(the second material)_1-x (0<

x<

1).

6. The optical thin film of claim 1, wherein the multi-layer structure includes a plurality of configuration layers containing the second material.

7. The optical thin film of claim 6, wherein a composition fraction of the second material contained in each of the plurality of configuration layers for configuring the graded-refractive index layer gradually increases as the refractive index distribution becomes closer to the second material layer.

8. The optical thin film of claim 1, wherein the second material layer and the graded-refractive index layer are formed of a porous structure having micro-porosity.

9. The optical thin film of claim 8, wherein porosity density of the second material layer is larger than porosity density of the graded-refractive index layer.

10. The optical thin film of claim 9, wherein porosity density of each of the plurality of configuration layers for configuring the graded-refractive index layer gradually increases as the refractive index distribution becomes closer to the second material layer.

11. The optical thin film of claim 8, wherein the micro-porosity includes a nano-air pore.

12. A semiconductor light emitting layer comprising:

an n-electrode;

an n-type semiconductor layer;

an active layer;

a p-type semiconductor layer;

a p-electrode; and

the optical thin film according to claim 1 on a light emission surface from which light generated from the active layer is emitted and providing a light transmittance path.

13. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 12, wherein the light emission surface is one selected from the group consisting of the n-electrode, the n-type semiconductor layer, the p-type semiconductor layer, and the p-electrode.

14. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 13, wherein the first material layer has the same refractive index as that of a material used in forming the light emission surface.

15. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 12, wherein the optical thin film is formed on the n-electrode and the n-electrode is formed of a transparent conductive oxide or a transparent conductive oxide.

16. The semiconductor light emitting device of claim 12, wherein the optical thin film is formed on the p-electrode and the p-electrode is formed of a transparent conductive oxide or a transparent conductive oxide.

17. A method of fabricating an optical thin film comprising:

providing a first material layer having a first refractive index;

forming a second material layer on the first material layer that has a second refractive index that is smaller than the first refractive index; and

forming a graded-refractive index layer between the first material layer and the second material layer and having a multi-layer structure in which a refractive index distribution gradually decreases in a range between the first refractive index and the second refractive index as the refractive index distribution progresses from the first material layer toward the second material layer.

18. A method of fabricating a semiconductor light emitting layer comprising:

providing an n-electrode;

an n-type semiconductor layer;

an active layer;

a p-type semiconductor layer;

a p-electrode; and

forming the optical thin film according to claim 17 on a light emission surface from which light generated from the active layer is emitted and providing a light transmittance path.