LIGHT EMITTING DEVICE HAVING GROUP III-NITRIDE CURRENT SPREADING LAYER DOPED WITH TRANSITION METAL OR COMPRISING TRANSITION METAL NITRIDE

• US 20130048939A1
• Filed: 08/22/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zhejiang Invenlux Technology Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Invenlux Limited
• Inventors: ZHANG, JIANPING, YAN, CHUNHUI
• Granted Patent: US 9,330,911 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/13
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0242 Crystalline insulating materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02439 Materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02458 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02507 Alternating layers, e.g. superlattice
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0254 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02581 Transition metal or rare earth elements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0262 Reduction or decomposition of gaseous compounds, e.g. CVD
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/10 with a light reflecting structure, e.g. semiconductor Bragg reflector
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/14 with a carrier transport control structure, e.g. highly-doped semiconductor layer or current-blocking structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/32 containing nitrogen

Abstract

A light-emitting device, such as a light-emitting diode (LED), has a group III-nitride current spreading layer which is either doped with transition metal, or comprises alternating transition metal nitride layer and group III-nitride layer. Also provided is a light-emitting device, such as a light-emitting diode (LED), having a quantum well doped with transition metal. Also provided is a method of forming transition-metal containing AlInGaN electrical conductive material.

Claims

1. A III-nitride light emitting device, comprising

an Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN current spreading layer (where 0<

=x<

1, 0<

=y<

1, x+y<

1) doped with one or more transition metal selected from the group consisting of Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, and W;

an n-type layer formed on the current spreading layer;

a p-type layer; and

an active-region sandwiched between the n-type layer and the p-type layer.

2. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 1, wherein the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN current spreading layer is doped with Hf, Zr, or Ti via introducing tetrakis dimethylamino hafnium, tetrakis dimethylamino titanium, or tetrakis dimethylamino zirconium.

3. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 1, wherein the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN current spreading layer is doped with the one or more transition metal at a dopant concentration in the range of 10¹⁸-10²² cm⁻

3.

4. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 1, wherein in the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN current spreading layer has a composition:

0≦

x≦

0.8, 0≦

y≦

0.3.

5. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 1, wherein at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with a transition metal selected from the group consisting of Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, and W.

6. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 5, wherein said at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with Hf, Zr, or Ti via introducing tetrakis dimethylamino hafnium, tetrakis dimethylamino titanium, and tetrakis dimethylamino zirconium.

7. A III-nitride light emitting device, comprising

a current spreading layer comprising alternating Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers and transition-metal nitride layers, where 0<

=x<

1, 0<

=y<

1, x+y<

1;

an n-type layer formed on the current spreading layer;

a p-type layer; and

an active-region sandwiched between the n-type layer and the p-type layer.

8. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 7, wherein a thickness of each of the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers is in the range of 5-100 nm and a thickness of each of the transition-metal nitride layers is in the range of 0.5-10 nm.

9. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 7, wherein a thickness of each of the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers and a thickness of each of the transition-metal nitride layers are selected to make the current spreading layer a conductive distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) with visible light reflectivity greater than 80%.

10. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 7, wherein the transition-metal nitride layers are made of HfN, ZrN, or TiN.

11. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 7, wherein the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers are made of GaN.

12. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 7, wherein at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with a transition metal selected from the group consisting of Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, and W.

13. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 12, wherein said at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with Hf, Zr, or Ti via introducing tetrakis dimethylamino hafnium, tetrakis dimethylamino titanium, and tetrakis dimethylamino zirconium.

14. A III-nitride light emitting device, comprising

a substrate;

an n-type layer formed on the substrate;

a p-type layer; and

an active-region sandwiched between the n-type layer and the p-type layer, wherein at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with a transition metal selected from the group consisting of Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, and W.

15. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 14, wherein said at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with Hf, Zr, or Ti via introducing tetrakis dimethylamino hafnium, tetrakis dimethylamino titanium, and tetrakis dimethylamino zirconium.

16. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 14, wherein said at least one quantum well in the active-region is doped with a dopant concentration in the range of 10¹⁶-10²⁰ cm⁻

3.

17. A III-nitride light emitting device, comprising

an n-type layer;

a p-type layer;

an active-region sandwiched between the n-type layer and the p-type layer; and

a p-type current spreading layer formed on the p-type layer, wherein said p-type current spreading layer comprises alternating Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers and transition-metal nitride layers, or is an Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layer doped with transition metal selected from the group consisting of Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, and W, where 0<

=x<

1, 0<

=y<

1, x+y<

1.

18. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 17, wherein a thickness of each of the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers is in the range of 5-100 nm and a thickness of each of the transition-metal nitride layers is in the range of 0.5-10 nm.

19. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 17, wherein the transition-metal nitride layers are made of HfN, ZrN, or TiN.

20. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 17, wherein the Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers are made of GaN.

21. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 17, further comprising a passivation layer formed on the p-type current spreading layer.

22. The III-nitride light emitting device of claim 17, further comprising an n-type current spreading layer on which the n-type layer is formed, wherein the n-type current spreading layer comprises alternating Al_x1In_y1Ga_1-x1-y1N layers and transition-metal nitride layers, or is an Al_x1In_y1Ga_1-x1-y1N layer doped with transition metal selected from the group consisting of Sc, Y, Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, and W, where 0<

=x1<

1, 0<

=y1<

1, x1+y1<

1.

23. A method of forming transition-metal-containing Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN electrical conductive material, where 0<

=x<

1, 0<

=y<

1, x+y<

1, comprising;

providing ammonia as nitrogen source;

providing Al—

, In—

, and Ga—

metalorganic source according to the formula Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN and transition-metal metalorganic source simultaneously into a vapor phase epitaxy reactor for epitaxial growth of the transition-metal-containing Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN electrical conductive material.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the ambient in the vapor phase epitaxy reactor for forming the transition-metal-containing Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN electrical conductive material contains nitrogen and hydrogen.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the ambient in the vapor phase epitaxy reactor for forming the transition-metal-containing Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN electrical conductive material contains nitrogen and is substantially hydrogen free.

26. The method of claim 23, wherein the Al—

, In—

, Ga—

metalorganic source is a Ga metalorganic source.

27. The method of claim 23, wherein the transition-metal metalorganic source is a Hf metalorganic source, a Zr metalorganic source, or a Ti metalorganic source.

28. A method of forming transition-metal-containing Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN electrical conductive material, where 0<

=x<

1, 0<

=y<

1, x+y<

1, comprising;

providing ammonia as nitrogen source;

alternatively providing transition-metal metalorganic source and Al—

, In—

, Ga—

metalorganic source according to the formula Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN into a vapor phase epitaxy reactor for epitaxial growth of alternative transition-metal nitride layers and Al_xIn_yGa_1-x-yN layers, which step comprising;

providing the Al—

, In—

, Ga—

metalorganic source for a predetermined period of time without providing the transition metal source;

shutting off said Al—

, In—

, Ga—

metalorganic source while providing the transition-metal metalorganic source for another predetermined period of time.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the ambient in the vapor phase epitaxy reactor for forming the transition-metal-containing AlInGaN electrical conductive material contains nitrogen and hydrogen.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the ambient in the vapor phase epitaxy reactor for forming transition-metal-containing AlInGaN electrical conductive material contains nitrogen and is substantially hydrogen free.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the Al—

, In—

, Ga—

metalorganic source is a Ga metalorganic source.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein the transition-metal metalorganic source is a Hf metalorganic source, a Zr metalorganic source, or a Ti metalorganic source.