SEMICONDUCTOR LIGHT EMITTING ELEMENT

• US 20120161183A1
• Filed: 12/23/2011
• Published: 06/28/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nichia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nichia Corporation
• Inventors: UBAHARA, Nobuhiro, DEGUCHI, Kouichiroh, YAMADA, Takao
• Granted Patent: US 9,093,356 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/98
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48463 the connecting portion on the bonding area of the semiconductor or solid-state body being a ball bond
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/156 two-dimensional arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/0093 Wafer bonding; Removal of the growth substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/08 with a plurality of light emitting regions, e.g. laterally discontinuous light emitting layer or photoluminescent region integrated within the semiconductor body H01L27/15 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/20 with a particular shape, e.g. curved or truncated substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/38 with a particular shape
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/405 Reflective materials

Abstract

A semiconductor light emitting element comprises a semiconductor laminate including a p-type semiconductor layer, an active layer and an n-type semiconductor layer which are sequentially laminated; and a conductive support substrate joined to the p-type semiconductor layer side of the semiconductor laminate. The semiconductor laminate is divided into at least two semiconductor regions by a trench penetrating the p-type semiconductor layer, the active layer and the n-type semiconductor layer.

Claims

1. A semiconductor light emitting element comprising:

a semiconductor laminate including a p-type semiconductor layer, an active layer and an n-type semiconductor layer which are sequentially laminated; and

a conductive support substrate joined to the p-type semiconductor layer side of the semiconductor laminate,

wherein the semiconductor laminate is divided into at least two semiconductor regions by a trench penetrating the p-type semiconductor layer, the active layer and the n-type semiconductor layer.

2. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, further comprising a reflection layer between the support substrate and the semiconductor laminate.

3. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 2, further comprising a reflection layer at the bottom of the trench.

4. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, further comprising an insulating protective layer between the support substrate and the semiconductor laminate.

5. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 4, wherein the protective layer is also disposed at the bottom of the trench.

6. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 4, wherein the protective layer is formed of a dielectric multilayered film.

7. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, further comprising:

an insulating protective layer and a reflection layer sequentially disposed in that order from the support substrate side between the support substrate and the semiconductor laminate,

wherein the protective layer is also disposed at the bottom of the trench.

8. The semiconductor light element according to claim 7, wherein the protective layer is formed of a dielectric multilayered film.

9. The semiconductor emitting element according to claim 2, wherein the reflection layer is formed of a metal film.

10. The semiconductor emitting element according to claim 9, wherein the metal film is an Ag film or an Al film.

11. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, wherein the trench has a width of 3 to 25 μ

m.

12. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, wherein:

a top view shape of the semiconductor light emitting element is rectangular, and

a ratio of a length of a side of the rectangular semiconductor light emitting element to a width of a trench extending in direction perpendicular to the side is 100;

25 to 100;

0.28.

13. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, wherein a top view shape of each of the semiconductor regions is square, rectangular or triangular.

14. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, further comprising:

an n-side pad for wire bonding disposed over each n-type semiconductor layer of the semiconductor regions,

wherein each of the n-side pads is disposed adjacent to a side of each of the corresponding semiconductor regions.

15. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 14, wherein the semiconductor regions are disposed such that at least one side of each of the semiconductor regions is disposed at an outer periphery of the semiconductor light emitting element, and

each of the n-side pads is disposed adjacent to the at least one side of each of the semiconductor regions that is disposed at the outer periphery of the semiconductor light emitting element.

16. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 14, further comprising a stretched electrode electrically connected to the n-side pad and disposed on the n-type semiconductor layer.

17. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, wherein a ratio of a thickness of the p-type semiconductor layer to a thickness of the n-type semiconductor layer is 1:

50 to 1;

3.

18. The semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 1, wherein a surface of the n-type semiconductor layer is roughened.

19. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element, the method comprising:

a growing step of forming a semiconductor laminate by sequentially growing an n-type semiconductor layer, an active layer, and a p-type semiconductor layer over a growth substrate;

a joining step of joining the p-type semiconductor layer to a support substrate;

a removing step of removing the growth substrate; and

a chip formation step of dividing the support substrate into a plurality of semiconductor light emitting elements,

wherein the semiconductor laminate is divided into a plurality of semiconductor regions by trenches before the chip formation step, and

wherein, in the chip formation step, the support substrate is divided along at least one of the trenches to thereby provide the plurality of semiconductor light emitting elements, at least one of the semiconductor light emitting elements containing at least two semiconductor regions.

20. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, further comprising a region dividing step of dividing the semiconductor laminate into a plurality of semiconductor regions by forming the trenches in the semiconductor laminate between the removing step and the chip formation step.

21. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, further comprising a region dividing step of dividing the semiconductor laminate into a plurality of semiconductor regions by forming the trenches in the semiconductor laminate between the growing step and the joining step.

22. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 20, wherein the region dividing step is carried out using a dry etching method or a wet etching method.

23. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 21, wherein the region dividing step is carried out using a dry etching method or a wet etching method.

24. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, wherein the plurality of semiconductor regions divided by the trenches are formed during the growing step.

25. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, wherein:

the semiconductor region is formed into chips such that at least one side of each of the semiconductor regions is disposed at an outer periphery of the semiconductor light emitting element in the chip formation step, and

an n-side pad is formed over each n-type semiconductor layer of the semiconductor regions, each n-side pad being adjacent to the at least one side of each of the semiconductor regions that is disposed at the outer periphery of the semiconductor light emitting element.

26. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, wherein the p-type semiconductor layer is joined to the support substrate so that the extension direction of the trench is identical to the crystal orientation of the support substrate in the joining step.

27. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, further comprising a reflection layer formation step of forming a reflection layer on a surface of the p-type semiconductor layer before the joining step,

wherein the support substrate is jointed to the surface side of the p-type semiconductor layer via the reflection layer in the joining step.

28. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 27, further comprising a reflection layer removing step of partially removing the reflection layer.

29. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 28, wherein the reflection layer removing step is carried out after the joining step.

30. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 28, wherein the reflection layer removing step is carried out before the joining step.

31. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 27, wherein the reflection layer is formed in separate portions so as to correspond to the divided semiconductor regions in the reflection layer formation step.

32. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, further comprising an insulating protective layer formation step of forming an insulating protective layer on a surface of the p-type semiconductor layer before the joining step,

wherein the support substrate is joined to the surface side of the p-type semiconductor layer via the protective layer in the joining step.

33. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 27, further comprising an insulating protective layer formation step of forming an insulating protective layer on a surface of the reflection layer after the reflection layer formation step.

34. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 32, wherein the protective layer is formed of a dielectric multilayered film.

35. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 33, wherein the protective layer is formed of a dielectric multilayered film.

36. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor light emitting element according to claim 19, further comprising a roughening step of roughening a surface of the n-type semiconductor layer after the removing step.